


Reclaim and Renew

by Thraceadams



Series: Claimed Universe [4]
Category: Adam Lambert (Musician)
Genre: Blood Drinking, Bloodplay, M/M, Minor Character Death, Vampires
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-01-15
Updated: 2014-01-15
Packaged: 2018-01-08 04:24:52
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 29,414
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1128326
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Thraceadams/pseuds/Thraceadams
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After the events of Betrayal and Sacrifice, Adam and Tommy need to take some time for themselves. They need to connect, renew their relationship and reclaim their bond.  They take two weeks and head to Colorado to a B&B owned by Danielle for some much needed R&R.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Reclaim and Renew

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks to **GlambertUK71** for the FANTASTIC beta - all remaining mistakes are mine.
> 
> Artwork by the equally AMAZING **Qafmaniac!!** *Loud applause* She made the border and all the dividers. Also, an AMAZING soundtrack for this fic which you can find **[HERE](https://www.4shared.com/download/06-pgGlbba/Reclaim_and_Renew_Soundtrack.zip)** You can find her official art post on **[Dreamwidth here](http://qafmaniac.dreamwidth.org/304879.html)** or **[Livejournal here](http://qafmaniac.livejournal.com/236166.html)**
> 
>  
> 
>  
> 
> **Also, I don't own any rights to these people, obviously :D**

 

"Two whole weeks, Tommy Joe.  We've got two whole weeks!"

Tommy turned to look at Adam in the driver's seat and smiled at him.  It had been just over a month since the whole incident with Blake.  Tommy was fully recovered, Adam was back to his normal self, for the most part.  There were times when he didn't know Tommy was watching him that he would stare out the window, his expression thoughtful and full of regret.  Tommy knew he was thinking, planning, whatever, he was figuring out how he was going to attempt to prove Danny was behind the whole thing and seek his revenge. But for now they had two weeks to themselves and they were going to make the most of it.

Tommy leaned back in the seat and looked out the window.  The scenery was beautiful.  He'd never been to Colorado.   Adam had wanted to go someplace outdoorsy, but because he was a Vamp, the beach wasn't really a viable option.  Adam could go out into the sun if he was wearing some of his jewelry but his skin was just too pale.  He didn't look natural under natural light.  He always had an ethereal quality about him but under natural sunlight his skin was almost luminescent.  He didn't sparkle like those fucking Vamps in Twilight, but there was something about his skin that humans would see as just a bit off.  So no beach vacation. 

Adam had wanted Tommy to choose so he'd done his research.  He'd given Adam three choices and Adam picked Colorado because he had a friend that owned a bed and breakfast outside of Boulder.  He'd booked a room for them for the entire time. Colorado was still nice this time of year, it wasn't too cold and the sun shone a lot.  So Tommy could get his sun, and the only part of Adam that would be exposed would be his face, which he normally covered with makeup.

Adam reached over and placed his hand on Tommy's leg.  "Hey, you okay?"

Tommy turned away from the window and offered Adam a smile.  "Yeah, yeah, I'm fine.  I was just thinking about everything that happened you know?"

He winced as he saw the haunted look appear in Adam's eyes and instantly regretted reminding Adam of what had happened.  "I'm sorry," he whispered.

Adam squeezed his leg.  "Don't be.  It's okay.  I just really hate that I did that to you."

Tommy frowned.  "I thought we'd put that past us?  You promised me you weren't gonna beat yourself up about that.  I was the one that cut myself, I was the one that whipped you into a blood lust frenzy.  I knew how much you loved the scent of my blood.  It's why I did it, because I knew once you smelled my blood you wouldn't be able to resist and—" his breath hitched in his chest as he fought to speak over the lump that had formed in his throat.  "I couldn't lose you.  Te—Terrance told me about losing his mate."

He turned to look at Adam, tears in his eyes.  "I couldn't lose you, okay?  I couldn't."

Adam reached his hand up and cupped the side of Tommy's face, smiling when Tommy pressed into it. "I know, I know."

Adam turned his focus back to the road and Tommy could tell by the slight widening of his eyes that he was using his Vamp abilities to make the driving easier. It was quiet for a moment. "Blake threatened you. And no, I’m not going to tell you what he said, because mostly I don't remember and he's gone now so it doesn't matter.  But when he was torturing me, he threatened you, said he was going to horrible things to you.  When I saw you, all I could think was that he was going to get his hands on you and I couldn't let that happen. That's why I fought it so hard. I wanted you as far away from him as possible."

He turned to look at Tommy, "Because I couldn't lose you either."

Tommy reached over and squeezed his thigh. "Terrence, he told me he's never seen anyone with a bond like ours.  He said he and his mate were claimed just like you and I but they weren't connected as deeply."

Adam wrinkled his brow thoughtfully.  "I suppose that's true.  I've known him a long time and I know he was very close to his mate, I was there when he almost died because his mate did.  But I think he's right.  The bond you and I have is very different."

Tommy took a deep breath, realizing he'd never told Adam the truth about that night.  He sighed. He wasn't about to do it now. That was for later, when they weren't on a two-week vacation.

"Tommy?"

Shoving his heavy thoughts down, Tommy put a grin on his face and turned to Adam. "You're not going to make me do anything overly athletic are you?"

Adam chuckled, Tommy recognizing the mischievous tone to it and feeling his face heat up. 

"Oh Tommy, this vacation is going to be so much fun."

Adam checked the directions once more.  "We should be there in about twenty minutes.  Danielle is the owner, she and I go way back.  She's one of the rare humans outside of our little 'glamily' that not only knows about vampires but knows about me as well.  I told her over the phone that I had a claimed mate now.  She was thrilled.  I think she's giving us her best suite.  Plus there'll be breakfast every morning and I know she makes amazing food.  And, with Boulder so close by, we won't be lacking for places for dinner."

"But I thought you couldn't eat out?  You know because of the fans and the whole drinking blood thing."

Adam smiled at him.  "There are several 'Vamp friendly' places in Boulder.  Meaning, they're either owned by Vamps, or have a Vamp as the head chef.  When you make a reservation, you have a special code and they make special food for us.  The rest of the patrons have no idea that the really dark red wine I'm drinking is dark because it's mostly blood.  Or that the rare steak I'm eating has been infused with extra blood, or the dressing on my salad is red because it has blood in it.  As you know, I can eat human food I just don't get anything out of it. The only way I do is if it's fortified like that, so to speak."

He glanced over quickly at Tommy.  "We've been fitting into human society for centuries.  We know how to hide in plain sight. It was harder while we were on tour because of all the fans.  You know how they can be, I pop out to a vending machine and someone is there to take my picture.  That's why I usually ate on the bus or in the hotel room, even though there were Vamp friendly places in just about every place we went.  I couldn't take the chance, you know?  But here, we'll be alone.  Nobody knows we're coming here. Danielle will most definitely keep it quiet and since we aren't staying at a hotel, the chances of a fan spotting us are much lower.  Danielle assured me we'd be alone most of our stay and that the one couple that would be staying there are regulars for her."

"What about when we go out?  Won't you be recognized then?"

Adam grinned.  "Ahh, we've been so busy, I haven't told you about the glamour."

"The glamour?"

"Yeah, it's a Vamp ability I rarely use, I probably should use it more often but," he shrugged.  "I can make myself appear different."

"Different how?"

"Uglier, different hair color, different eye color, or I can just will it so even though people see me, they don't really recognize me.  Or they think I look familiar but not enough to place me and usually not enough for someone to come up and say, 'hey, you look familiar.'"

"That's cool.  Yeah, why don't you use that more often?  You could go to so many places."

Again Adam shrugged.  "I only use it when I have to.  I don't like controlling and taking advantage of humans like that. People like Danny use it a lot. They use it to bend human will and I—I just can't do that.  It's not me and I refuse.  So I guess that's why."

"But you'll do it now?"

"To take you out?  Yeah, I would. I guess I see it as protecting you. I can't change your appearance but I can make people not pay attention to us.  I guess my instinct to protect my mate overrides my instinct not to manipulate humans."

Tommy felt a rush of happiness hearing that and smiled, ducking his head, feeling his cheeks heat up.  Adam reached over and squeezed the back of his neck and Tommy pressed into the touch.  Adam watched him for a second, and then took his hand away and put it back on the wheel.  Tommy let out a disappointed huff and Adam laughed.

"Don't worry, you'll get plenty of touching.  You know that's one of the things I love about you.  You are so tactile and so responsive.  So many fun things I can do with that."

Tommy shifted a bit in his seat, his pants suddenly growing uncomfortably tight at the thought of Adam taking advantage of his sensitivity. 

Adam closed his eyes and inhaled deeply through his nose, sniffing the air.  "Fuck, Tommy," he moaned.  "You have no idea how good you smell right now.  Your blood is already intoxicating to me, but when you're aroused?"

"Sorry!  You're the one that started it," Tommy grumbled, palming his cock through his pants trying to make it go down. 

Adam clenched his teeth.  "We're almost there.  We can check in, talk with Danielle for a few minutes and then we are going to our room and we may not leave until it's time for dinner.  If I know Danielle, she'll have snacks for us inside the room.  Species appropriate, there'll be blood for me and protein for you."

"Good, because if you keep talking I'm gonna come in my jeans right here in this car."

"You do that and I'll drive right off this road," Adam warned.

"So stop talking then," Tommy replied.

They lapsed into silence and Tommy worked very hard to will his dick back under control.  By the time they reached Danielle's about fifteen minutes later, they were both back in control, but even a blind man could see the sexual tension lying just underneath the surface.

"We're here." Adam said, pulling into the driveway. 

Tommy looked out the window at the gorgeous two-story house.  "This is really beautiful."

"Yeah, she's done a really nice job of restoring and upgrading it."

He parked the car and got out.  Tommy followed him around to the trunk.  They got their bags out and Adam shut the trunk and locked the car.  He held his hand out for Tommy to take.

"You ready?"

Tommy nodded.

"Good, let's go meet Danielle."

Tommy followed Adam up onto the porch and into the house.  Danielle was a pretty brunette with green eyes who smiled as she opened the door.

"Adam!" she flung herself into his arms. 

Tommy smiled.  Everyone was dwarfed by Adam, and even though Danielle wasn't petite, she was completely engulfed in Adam's arms.  Within a few seconds though Tommy found himself with an armful of Danielle. 

"You must be Tommy," she exclaimed, launching herself into his arms as well.  Her hair smelled like apples and she was curvy in all the right places.  When she stepped away her whole face was lit up with a cheery smile.

"I'm so glad you guys decided to come here for your vacation.  You won't regret it.  Follow me, we'll get you checked in and then you two can go to your room and relax for a while.  I know whenever I fly I need to just get to my room, eat and shower, then once I feel human again, I can go out and be social.  So I won't force you to stay down here and chat with me.  We can do that later after you've settled in."

She grabbed Adam's hands and pulled him after her.  Tommy followed, unable to suppress the smile.  Adam was right, she was definitely a spitfire.  This was going to be a fun two weeks. 

By the time Tommy caught up with Adam and Danielle they were chatting about a mile a minute and he knew there was no way he was going to keep up with the conversation.  So he wandered around the foyer and looked at all the pictures she had up on the wall.  Some were pictures of the house but most were pictures of her with people he assumed were former guests.  She'd had some pretty famous people stay with her.  A lot of the pictures were autographed and personalized. 

"Tommy!"

He turned at the sound of Adam's voice to see him motioning him to come over so he did. 

"Ready to go up?"

Tommy nodded and then turned to Danielle, hugging her again.  "Thanks for this.  It was really great to meet you."

She squeezed him back.  "You two go on upstairs, there'll be plenty of time for us to catch up later."

Tommy smiled at her gratefully, grabbed his bag and followed Adam up the stairs to their room.  He was a bit nervous that it would be all frilly and shit because most places like this were so he was pleasantly surprised when Adam opened the door to a very modern looking room, done tastefully in black, silver, and white.  He looked around surprised at how big the room actually was.  There was a sitting area and a small kitchenette and then a door opened into a very nice bedroom with a king size bed and that opened into a bathroom that could fit the whole band.  There were two sinks but Tommy barely noticed those because, well, the bathroom was made for sex. There was a very large shower with one of those funky rainfall showerheads and a large tub with jets.   He looked around and didn't even see the toilet until Adam pointed out a door and told him it was in its own separate little room. 

Adam had already laid out his suitcase and started hanging things in the closet.  Tommy went over to his bag and dug around for a bit, pulling out the two or three things that needed to be hung up and did the same.  And then his stomach growled and Adam laughed.  Tommy sent him a glare.

"Well, I guess I know what we're doing next.  Why don't you go see what she's left for us?"

Tommy grabbed his bathroom stuff out of his bag and dropped it off in the bathroom before heading into the kitchenette.  He looked around.  There was a fruit basket on the counter with a card from Danielle, he'd let Adam read the card later.  He opened the mini-fridge and knew he'd hit the jackpot.  There were several bags of blood for Adam and some cold-packed salmon for him along with some chicken salad, some lunchmeat, and some cheese.  He pulled out the salmon and one of the bags of blood.  He put his salmon on a plate and got a fork before pouring Adam's blood into a mug and throwing it into the microwave. 

Somehow he managed to spill a bit of the liquid on his hand and was instantly back in that warehouse, his own blood draining out of him, Adam bloody and injured on the floor in front of him. His vision tunneled and his chest went tight. He could hear Adam calling his name but it sounded like he was really far away.

"Tommy! Tommy!"

Then Adam's arms were around him and all he could feel or smell was Adam. His breath came in gasps as he tried to get it under control.  When his breathing finally slowed down, Adam spoke.

"Better?"

Tommy nodded into his chest and Adam stroked a hand down his back.  "Okay, let me get my blood, you eat your salmon and then I'm gonna take care of you okay?"

Tommy shook against his chest, a shudder going through his body and Adam kissed the side of his head.  "Come on, you need to eat something.  Especially if I'm gonna be wearing you out."

Tommy felt his face heat up as he pushed away from Adam's chest mumbling "fucker" underneath his breath.

"Damn straight," Adam growled, "And as soon as you finish eating I'm gonna be fucking you.  So hurry up."

Tommy ducked his head, smiling, feeling his dick start to take an immediate interest in things.  He started forking up some of the salmon as he watched Adam drink the blood from his mug.  Adam's face pinked up a bit and Tommy knew he'd be warm for a short period, more if he drank from Tommy which was a big reason he needed to finish off the salmon, so Adam could drink from him if he wanted.  Tommy needed his strength.  He had a feeling he'd be consuming a lot of protein over the next two weeks if Adam had his way, which he usually did. 

Adam finished his mug and set it in the sink after rinsing it out.  He turned to Tommy just as he took the last forkful of salmon and grinned at him, a predatory gleam to his eyes.  Tommy chewed fast and swallowed hard, before squeezing past Adam to rinse his plate off and putting it into the sink.  He snagged a glass from the counter and poured a quick glass of water to wash the taste of salmon from his mouth.  He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and met Adam's gaze. 

Adam crowded into him, pressing him back against the sink.  He leaned forward, nuzzling and sniffing at Tommy's neck.  "I don't think we're gonna make it to the bed this first time around, baby.  I think I wanna take you right here in the kitchen.  Lift you up on the counter, wrap your legs around me and sink myself right into you."

Tommy felt his heart pound and his cock harden at Adam's words.  His breathing sped up as he gripped Adam's arms, pulling him close. 

"You want that?"

"Fuck yeah," Tommy groaned into his shoulder, already mouthing at Adam's collar, trying to get his lips on skin.

Adam chuckled softly and then slid his hand in between them, palming Tommy's dick through his jeans, giving it a good squeeze.  "So ready for me, all the fucking time, so hot," he whispered. 

With expert fingers, he opened Tommy's jeans and pushed them down over his hips. Obviously pleased to feel skin immediately, he pulled back and Tommy looked up at him.  "No underwear, I approve."

Tommy snorted and nuzzled back into Adam's neck.  He toed his shoes off as Adam pushed his jeans down further until he could step out of them.  Just as he kicked them to the side, Adam lifted him up onto the counter and Tommy wrapped his legs around Adam's waist, digging his heels into Adam's ass.

"Too many clothes," he complained, the rough denim of Adam's jeans rubbing against his cock, drops of precome starting to leak out from the slit. 

Adam kissed his neck, licking it lightly, working his own jeans off in the process.  When he was finally free of his pants he pulled back and smirked.  "Not anymore."

Tommy returned his smirk and grabbed at the bottom of Adam's shirt.  "Shirt too." 

Adam raised his arms, letting Tommy pull the shirt over his head and was about to do the same for Tommy except Tommy leaned forward and licked at his nipple before sucking it into this mouth and gently nipping it with his teeth.  Adam dropped his hands into Tommy's hair, threading his fingers through it, pressing Tommy's face to his chest.  "Yes," he hissed through clenched teeth.

Tommy smiled against Adam's chest and shifted to the other side, tonguing the nipple until it was hard and then biting it until Adam pulled his head away.  Adam crushed their lips together and Tommy just opened his mouth and held on for the ride.  He tried to meet Adam's tongue thrust for thrust but finally gave up because it was just easier to let Adam have control. 

He clutched at Adam's shoulders trying to tug him closer but Adam pulled away instead.  Tommy looked at him in confusion until Adam held two fingers up to his lips.  Immediately, Tommy sucked them into his mouth, licking them, biting them, and getting them as wet as possible because he knew things were about to get rough and this was all he was going to get. 

Adam pulled his fingers out before Tommy felt like he was done and he chased after them with his tongue.  But Adam had grabbed him behind his knee and shifted him forward and there was a spit-slicked finger teasing his hole. 

"Fuck, Adam!" he pressed down against that finger, feeling it slide past his muscle.  He leaned forward kissing Adam's shoulder, mouthing at it and finally biting it when he felt a second finger push its way inside him.  His cock throbbed with need and he reached between them, wrapping a fist around his cock.  He managed to get a couple of good strokes in before Adam noticed what he was doing and batted his hand away. 

"Uh-huh, you come from me fucking you, Tommy Joe.  Understand?"

Tommy's shoulders slumped as he nodded his head.  Sometimes Adam could be a toppy bitch but fuck it was hot.  He wrapped his arms back around Adam's neck, his fingers playing with the hair at his nape, twirling it around.  He let out a gasp when Adam introduced a third finger but couldn't keep himself from thrusting down onto Adam's hand.

"I know baby, just a minute okay?"

Tommy nodded, licking his shoulder again, turning his head to suck one of Adam's earlobes into his mouth.  He was rewarded with an unrestrained groan.  Adam fumbled for a bottle that was sitting out on the counter, one Tommy hadn’t noticed before.  He followed Adam’s movement and his eyes widened.  Either Danielle really did know Adam well or she was just really well prepared, because right there on the counter was a bottle of massage oil. 

Tommy pulled back from Adam's shoulder to watch as he slicked up his cock, his own cock twitching in anticipation of feeling Adam inside him.  "Hurry," he said breathlessly, digging his heels into Adam's ass again.

"Patience Tommy," Adam crooned.

Tommy shot Adam a glare and Adam just winked at him. He positioned himself at Tommy's entrance.  With one quick thrust he was inside and Tommy was panting trying to adjust to the sudden intrusion.  Adam stayed still for a few seconds but started to move before Tommy was quite ready.  Tommy dug his blunt nails into Adam's back and bit his shoulder, muffling the sound that Adam ripped from his throat. 

The stretch was almost too much, the burn hovered right on the edge of pain, and he felt so full.  Every time with Adam felt like this, but especially when Adam didn't take his time to prep him first, which wasn't very often, just sometimes when the need to reconnect was strong.  He clung to Adam's back, holding on as Adam started up a punishing rhythm, his hands grabbing the counter beside Tommy's hips and using it for leverage. 

Adam swiveled his hips and Tommy gasped, pleasure shooting through him.  "Fuck," he groaned out as Adam did it again and again.  Before long, Tommy felt the now familiar curl of sensation building at the base of his spine.  "Fuck," he moaned again as Adam licked his ear.

"Come for me, Tommy Joe.  Come for me, right fucking now," Adam growled into his ear before sinking his fangs into Tommy's neck.

And suddenly Tommy was seeing stars as pleasure raced through him and seemed to explode out of his cock.  He barely felt the liquid that covered both their stomachs.  He slumped forward, his forehead resting on Adam's shoulder as Adam fucked him through the afterglow.  Adam was licking his wounds closed when he felt his rhythm falter and knew Adam was close.  A few more hard thrusts and Adam was shuddering against him, whispering his name over and over.

They slumped against each other, trying to catch their breath.  Adam recovered first, he always did.  He pulled back, reaching a hand up and rubbing his thumb over the fresh fang marks on Tommy's neck.  Tommy closed his eyes, his breath catching in his throat as pleasure spiked through him.  Adam chuckled softly.  "Let's go get cleaned up."

He slowly pulled out of Tommy and helped him off the counter before leading him back to the shower. 

The shower took much longer than expected.  Tommy really enjoyed the rainfall showerhead and soon Adam was hard again, just from the moans of delight that kept spilling from Tommy's mouth.  He blamed Tommy and told him to put his mouth to better use.  So Tommy obliged, dropping to his knees and sucking Adam off. 

Adam pulled him up and drew Tommy up against his chest.  And with a hand wrapped around his neck and another around his cock, he jerked Tommy off to the sound of Adam's voice whispering all sorts of filthy promises in his ear. 

When they finished cleaning off a second time, Adam just watched as Tommy stood under the water until he started to worry that Tommy would never look normal again because of all the wrinkles.  Laughing, he shut the water off and dragged Tommy out, wrapping a big fluffy towel around him and then himself. 

They dressed quickly in some clean clothes and left to go find Danielle.  Adam thanked her for the room and the snacks and she gave them a list of sights to go see.  She declined their offer to join them saying she had to stay and work on some paperwork.  They smiled at her sympathetically, hugged her goodbye and went out to their rental car.

"So where do you want to go first?"

"I don't know, maybe just drive around, see what we have to work with?"

"Sounds good."

They spent several hours just driving around downtown Boulder, Tommy making a list of things Adam mentioned and things he saw. He wasn't too thrilled with the art museums but Adam seemed really interested so he wrote them all down. He saw several signs for hiking places out of the city and although hiking wasn't normally his thing, he could tell his cat was itching to get out and just run for a while. This would be the perfect place to do it.

Eventually, Adam said he was hungry and Tommy admitted that his stomach was growling as well. Without even asking Tommy about dinner, Adam pulled into the parking lot of a Mexican restaurant and Tommy grinned. Of course Adam wouldn't have asked if this was his plan, he already knew how much Tommy liked Mexican.

"This is my favorite place to eat out when I come see Danielle.  It's run by a vamp and you're gonna love her tacos."

"What are you gonna eat?"

Adam smiled knowingly at him.  "They make a mean Bloody Mary here, and their special beef enchiladas are to die for."

Tommy's eyes widened in understanding and a smile spread across his face.  "Well then lead on because I'm starving and knowing you, I should store up on some more protein."

Adam wrapped his arm around Tommy's waist, pulling him close so he could whisper in his ear.  "Yeah, I have plans for you tonight so you're gonna need the extra energy."

"What plans?"

Adam kissed his cheek.  "Surprise, can't tell you.  But I know you're going to love it."

Tommy looked at him, his lips turned down into a pout.

Adam chuckled, kissing them.  "Don't pout, even if you are pretty doing it."

Tommy laughed and let Adam pull him into the restaurant. 

It was dark inside but Tommy's eyes adjusted quickly.  The smell of the food was amazing and Tommy's stomach rumbled in anticipation as soon as it registered the smells.  Adam squeezed his hand and Tommy smiled.  The vamp that greeted them was older than Tommy expected.  She was a short, motherly Hispanic woman who ushered them back to a table in a darkened corner where not only would they be relatively alone, they were hidden from most of the rest of the patrons in the restaurant.

Adam kissed her on both cheeks and she kissed him on the forehead, forgoing the formal mouth to mouth kiss and opting for the more casual greeting.  He bowed his head to her and she smiled, patting his cheek.  They took their seats and she took a drink order and then disappeared into the restaurant. 

"She seems nice," Tommy said softly.

Adam's face beamed with happiness.  "She really is.  She's kind of like a mother vamp to the ones that live around here and even ones that don't.  If you're nice to her, you have a mother protector for eternity, but fuck, don't get on her bad side."

She returned with a Bloody Mary for Adam and a margarita for Tommy.  She turned to face Tommy and pinned him with a pointed look.  "So are you my Adam's new boyfriend?"

"Yes ma'am," Tommy replied, feeling his face grow hot.

"You treat him good, no?"

Tommy nodded vigorously.  "I love him."

She stared at him for a moment and then glanced over at Adam. 

"Momma Rosa, he almost died for me," Adam said softly.

She turned quickly back to Tommy.  "This true?"

Tommy nodded his head, not sure what to say.  "He was dying, I had to save him."

She looked back at Adam and even Tommy could see the pain that flashed through his eyes.  She bent over and kissed the top of Adam's head and then turned back to Tommy.  She leaned down, cupped his cheek and kissed his forehead.  "Welcome to mi familia.  Take good care of him."

She turned and pinned Adam with a glare then.  "And you, take good care of him too."

Adam ducked his head smiling.  "Yes, Momma Rosa, I promise."

Her face broke into a wide smile, "Okay.  You boys look at the menu, decide what you want.  I'll be back with some chips and my homemade salsa, some special salsa for you."

"Well, you passed," Adam said gleefully when she was out of earshot.

Tommy blushed.  "I didn't know there was a test."

Adam reached across the table and grabbed his hand.  "Oh honey, there's always a test when you're meeting family.  She likes you, that was clear.  Or she wouldn't have warned me about taking care of you."

Momma brought back chips and salsa, a special bowl for Adam that looked much darker than the one she gave to Tommy.

She left and Adam sat back in his chair, staring at Tommy until he went fidgety. "What?" Tommy said petulantly.

Adam chuckled. "It's nice to get away is all. No gang, no Council, no fans, nobody breathing down our necks –"

"Nobody kidnapping us and draining us dry," Tommy said softly.

He watched as the look on Adam's face turned serious.

"Tommy, I –"

"Adam, don't. It wasn't your fault. You're right though, we needed to get away from everyone. From everything. I think it'll be good for us."

Adam reached across the table and grabbed Tommy's hand, squeezing it. The fear and pain Tommy had felt in that warehouse was suddenly so close to the surface, it welled up in his throat and made it hard to swallow. "I almost lost you," he said so quietly that only Adam could have heard him.

"And I almost lost you." Adam's voice had a fierce edge to it.

Tommy looked away. "I knew you could save me but losing you would have killed me." He turned back to face him, his chin jutting out stubbornly. "I'd do it again. In a heartbeat."

Adam opened his mouth to speak but Momma Rosa arrived with their dinners and for the first few minutes they did nothing but eat.

It was Tommy that finally broke the silence. "Are you mad at me?" he asked, his voice small and vulnerable.

Adam let out a bitter laugh. "At myself for being stupid enough to get kidnapped." He looked up and met Tommy's eyes. "But at you? Never."

"Why?"

"Why what?" Adam asked in confusion.

"What makes me so special?"

Adam took a deep breath and Tommy watched as several different emotions he couldn't quite pin down crossed Adam's face before he finally started to speak.

"First and foremost because you're a Panwerecat.  You know how rare that is.  Which by the way I want to find out more about later.  Second, because you're my claimed mate and your life has been threatened twice now.  Word has spread about that and it has made the rest of the Vamps twitchy.  I told you that one of the things guaranteed to get you staked is if you kill the claimed mate of another Vamp.  So whoever is behind these attempts on your life, is either very stupid or well, I don't even know.  Because whatever they're planning, it's not working.  Vamps that didn't care about me one way or another are stepping up to support me because attacking a mate just isn't done.  Period. So put those two things together, and you are about the most protected non-Vamp in our world right now."

Tommy was silent, really not sure what to say.  Adam reached under the table and squeezed his leg.  "I don't want you to worry about anything.  There've been no further attempts and nobody's heard anything either.  It may have just been those two times and it may have died with Blake, who knows."

"You don't believe that, though, do you?" Tommy asked softly.

Adam pressed his lips together and Tommy could tell he was thinking, so he sat silently waiting for Adam to answer.

"No, I don't.  Honestly, I think Danny is behind all of this.  He's hated me for a very long time.  I know he and Blake weren't 'close' friends, but they were at the very least acquaintances.  And I think Blake was going to name him right before Danny staked him.  So, no, I don't believe everything died with Blake.  I just don't know what Danny is planning.  And I can't just go and accuse him of something without cause.  It's part of why I've been so accepting of his invitations lately."

"Keep your friends close-"

"Keep your enemies closer.  Exactly."

"Did you ever find Blake's phone?"

"No, not sure it would have mattered if we had."

"How come?"

"Because I think Danny's too smart to have used his own phone.  I'm sure he and Blake used those throw away phones.  And even if we had found a phone when we combed through the warehouse, it probably would have just dialed a dead number because I'm sure Danny disposed of his as soon as Blake was dusted.  No, Danny's too smart for that.  He's very savvy and I'm going to have to be even more so if I plan to catch him at his own game."

Tommy started chewing on his thumbnail again, wondering if there really was a price on his head. 

"Hey," Adam said softly.

Tommy turned to look at him, his face etched with worry.  Adam brought his hand up and rubbed the back of his knuckles down the side of Tommy's face.

"Baby, I don't want you to worry about this, okay?  We're on vacation and supposed to be having a good time.  I should never have told you any of this stuff, not here.  I'm sorry."

Tommy pressed his face into Adam's hand.  "Yes, you should have.  I'm glad you did.  I don't like it when I'm kept out of the loop.  I mean I understand why you do sometimes, but seriously, if it involves me I should know, you know?"

"I know baby.  That's why I told you.  I just, I don't want it to ruin our vacation.  Okay?  We're safe here, and I really think Danny's done going after you, at least for now.  I think he's gonna try another tactic.  Besides, Blake using coniine wasn't Danny's idea that was all Blake.  Danny just gave him Carte Blanche is all.  And Blake had his own agenda.  He'd wanted me for a very long time and I always rebuffed his advances because he wasn't my type at all.  So in retrospect it's not surprising that he'd use coniine.  He wanted me to hurt and the best way to do that would be to hurt you.  But he's gone now and we don't have anything to worry about.  Okay?"

Tommy nodded his head, his thoughts swirling.  Adam returned his attention to his food and Tommy replayed his words in his head.  His heart started racing at the thought of Adam being in danger and just what Danny might try to do to him. 

"Tommy," Adam warned.  "I can hear your heart racing. Calm down, baby, please?"

Tommy clenched his hands into fists and tried to follow Adam's order.  He closed his eyes and inhaled through his nose, exhaling through his mouth.  But with his eyes closed, he only saw Danny staking Adam over and over again.  He opened them with a gasp and dug his nails into his palms until the skin broke. 

Instantly Adam was up with a napkin pressed to his hand. "Tommy, I need you to breathe with me, okay? In. Out. In. Out. Just focus on me."

Tommy stared into Adam's eyes, following Adam's lead, breathing every breath with him until the panic subsided. "Better?" Adam asked softly.

Tommy nodded.

"Good, now finish up, desserts here are out of this world." Adam grinned at him mischievously.

A sudden sense of calm swept over Tommy and he finished his tacos in record time.

When they finished their meals Momma Rosa brought several kinds of dessert over.  By the time they finished dessert, Tommy wasn't sure he could move.  He rubbed his belly.  "I think I ate too much," he whined.

Adam chuckled.  "Don't worry, in a little while, you're gonna be glad I'm getting you some tacos to go."

Tommy's eyebrow quirked up at that and his face flushed a bit when Momma Rosa brought the carryout bag to the table and she warned Adam to be careful with him because he was special, she could tell.  Adam reassured her that he had Tommy's best interests at heart and then winked at her suggestively.  She giggled and nudged him with an elbow and Tommy wanted to crawl under the table. 

She hugged Tommy good-bye, and cupping his cheek with her hand, she leaned in and whispered in his ear.  "Adam's a good man.  And he'll make sure you're well taken care of.  But if something ever were to happen, you come to Momma Rosa, I'll see that you are safe."

She patted his cheek and he kissed hers and said thank you.  Then Adam grabbed his hand and pulled him out into the night toward their car. 

"I like her," Tommy laughed.  "She's a riot."

Adam smiled.  "Yeah, she's a character but you'll never find anyone more loyal that's for sure.  She tell you to come find her if something ever happened?"

Tommy looked at him in surprise.  "How? How did you know?"

Adam shrugged.  "I know Momma Rosa.  As soon as she said you were part of the family, you became hers to protect.  If something ever happens to me, you'll be under her protection."

He wrapped an arm around Tommy's waist and pulled him in close.  "You my love are one very protected kitty.  Between myself, Michaela, Simon, and now Momma Rosa, nobody better lay a finger on you, ever."

"I'm gonna tie you up tonight, Tommy Joe.  I think you need to relearn the lesson about trusting me to keep you safe."

Unconsciously, Tommy started to rub his wrists.  He arched a brow at Adam, figuring two could play that game. "Oh really?"

Adam nodded slowly. "Oh yeah, having you all bound and completely at my mercy?". 

Tommy swallowed hard and started backing up again.  Adam stepped forward. 

"Trust me Tommy Joe, I'll make this so good for you. I'll always keep you safe and happy."

Tommy tried to listen to his words, tried to focus on Adam's voice, but his heart was beating wildly in his chest, fluttering like an excited bird.  Arousal pulsed through his veins. He kept backing up until he found himself up against the door to the bedroom.  He wondered briefly if he could slip inside and lock it before Adam reached him.

"You know you can't," Adam growled, reading his mind.

Tommy looked around playfully for a second for any other form of escape and then Adam was on him, pressing him against the door, his nose nuzzling into Tommy's neck.

"You smell so good, so fucking good."  Adam licked up the side of his neck.  He tangled one of his hands in Tommy's fringe and yanked his head to the side, baring his neck to Adam.  Tommy reached up and clutched at Adam's arms, desperately trying to keep himself grounded as Adam started kissing and licking his neck in earnest.  Tommy could feel Adam's fangs lightly grazing his skin, felt his blood start to circulate south as his dick hardened in his pants. 

Adam slid a knee between Tommy's thighs and instinctively he pressed up against it, rubbing his quickly growing erection trying to get any kind of friction.  He whimpered when Adam pulled his thigh away, winced when Adam tugged his hair again, but he looked up at him.

"Uh-huh, Tommy Joe, tonight we come together. Understand?"

Tommy nodded his head, his brain already starting to go offline with arousal.  All thoughts of kidnappings and bleeding out fled from his brain. The only important thing now seemed to be getting his clothes off and getting Adam's cock inside his ass as soon as possible. 

"Adam, please," he pleaded, tightening his fingers on Adam's arms.

Adam smiled at him.  "That's it, just let go for me.  Come on," he said softly, taking Tommy's hand and leading him through the door into the bedroom.  "Strip for me baby, while I get a few things ready."

Tommy kicked off his boots and yanked off his hoodie and t-shirt.  Hurriedly, he set the boots by his suitcase and dropped his shirt and hoodie into what had become their laundry pile, all the while trying to get his jeans and boxer briefs off at the same time.  He almost tripped once and Adam had grabbed his elbow to steady him. 

"Careful, baby," Adam warned.

He let go when Tommy had his footing again and Tommy kicked his jeans off and over toward the laundry pile.  Then he stood, naked, waiting for Adam.

"Get up on the bed baby."

Without a word, Tommy climbed onto the bed and lay down in the middle of it. Adam crawled up over him, some white rope-like fabric bundled in his hand.  Tommy raised his face up for a kiss and Adam granted him one.  Tommy opened up immediately, feeling Adam's tongue push inside possessively.  He sucked at Adam's tongue greedily, barely even registering that Adam was rubbing his hand up and down his arm and gently guiding it over his head. 

Adam backed off to lick down his neck.  Tommy gasped when he felt the tiny pinprick of pain from Adam's fangs and just a tiny spike of pleasure that shot straight to his groin.  It wasn't until Adam pulled back and licked the tiny wounds closed and Tommy tried to reach for him that he even realized Adam had bound his wrists to the headboard using silk ropes.

Tommy jerked his hands hard against the ropes securing him to the headboard, making it rattle.  Adam placed a hand on his chest, in an attempt to soothe him.

"Tommy," he said quietly.

Tommy growled at Adam playfully, snapping his teeth. Adam just grinned. "Tsk, tsk. Temper temper, Tommy Joe."

With a snort, Tommy just rolled his eyes and tested his bonds again.

"Tommy!"

Tommy flicked his eyes over to Adam, smirking. "Let me go, please?  Please let me go." He even fluttered his goddamn eyelashes.

Adam reached down and stroked his face.  He lay down beside him, curling his body close to Tommy's.  "You really don't think that's going to work on me do you?"

Tommy shrugged as best he could. "Worth a try."

Adam sighed in what was obviously mock exasperation, tickling his fingers over Tommy's ribcage, making him squirm, holding back laughter until it was bursting out of him and he couldn't catch his breath.

"Shh, baby, I've got you, I need you to breathe for me, okay?  Can you do that?  Just breathe in through your nose, out through your mouth."

"Fucker," Tommy gasped out as Adam's touch turned less ticklish and more sensual. He tried to push into each touch but Adam would pull his hand away only to move it elsewhere. He took some deep breaths in through his nose, and blew them out through his mouth, his breath making Adam's bangs ruffle.  He closed his eyes and Adam leaned forward and placed soft kisses on his eyelids, his forehead, his nose, his cheeks, his lips until he calmed down. 

"Tommy Joe, open your eyes and look at me, please?" Adam’s voice held a touch of concern.

Tommy opened his eyes and stared into Adam's blue ones. 

"Is this okay? The tying up thing? It's not giving you flashbacks?"

Frowning, Tommy shook his head. "No, you were the one tied up, not me. I feel safe with you, always have. Get on with it or I'm shifting."

Adam narrowed his eyes and Tommy watched as his fangs dropped. His heart skipped a beat before it pounded out a staccato rhythm in his chest. All his blood rushed south and made his dick pulse with arousal.

"Do you trust me to give you what you need?"

Tommy watched him for a moment, saw the pleading in Adam's eyes, recognized the need in his voice, could smell his arousal and something else.  He wrinkled his nose a bit, closing his eyes again, concentrating.  He smelled a hint of fear, tinged with regret.  His eyes flew open and suddenly he could see it all there in Adam's eyes. Tommy could see that Adam still regretted what had happened in the warehouse, was still afraid Tommy didn't trust him completely.

Tommy bit his bottom lip as he gently tugged at the ropes again.  They weren't uncomfortable and as he looked at Adam he realized just how much he did trust him.  He trusted him enough to let him drink his blood on a regular basis and that was far more dangerous than letting Adam tie him up and risk going into a blood frenzy.  And with that thought he came to a decision.

He licked his lips and took a deep breath.  "Yes," he whispered softly.

Adam stared at him as if he didn't believe him.  "Yes?"

Tommy nodded, letting his arms relax into the ropes.  "I trust you Adam, and if you think you need to prove something or that we need to do this then I'm okay with that."

Adam sighed and sat back on his heels.  He pinched the bridge of his forehead.  "I don't need to prove anything.  I-I-just-" he slid away from Tommy.  "I just want you to know you can trust me to keep you safe."

Tommy pulled against the rope wanting to touch Adam, the disappointment and worry filling his voice making Tommy's heart ache.  "Adam?"

He tried again when Adam didn't turn to look at him.  "Adam, look at me, please?"

Adam turned around, his eyes red with unshed tears. 

"Oh baby," Tommy whispered.  "I trust you, I trust you with my life.  Every time I let you bite me I'm trusting you."

"But I almost killed you," Adam breathed out.

Tommy pulled against the ropes again, desperately wanting to take Adam into his arms.  "Come here," he growled.

Adam lay back down with his head on Tommy's chest.  Tommy felt tear drops on his skin and tilted his head to kiss the top of Adam's head.  "I knew what I was doing when I offered myself up to you like that, I knew the risk involved.  But I also trusted you to stop before you killed me.  And you did.  Is this because you feel the need to be able to trust yourself again?"

He felt Adam nod against his chest and he breathed out a sigh of relief.  "Why didn't you just tell me?"

"Don't know," Adam mumbled.

Tommy sighed, shifting his arms a bit, trying to ignore the aching need to wrap them around Adam and comfort him.  "I want you to do this.  I can do this for you.  If it's what you need to be able to trust yourself again than I can do this.  I'll be okay.  I trust you Adam.  I trust you to take care of me, to give me what I need, and to love me."

Adam looked up at him, his eyes hopeful.  "Really?  I mean, you trust me that much?"

Tommy nodded.  "I do.  I trust you to keep me safe. I want to do this.  Okay?"

Adam wiped his face and pushed up to kiss Tommy.  "Okay," he murmured against his mouth. 

"Good, now stop dicking around making me discuss our feelings and get back to the part where you were sexing me up."

"Brat," Adam laughed, slapping Tommy's thigh.

"Oh, more please," Tommy batted his eyes.

"I'll give you more." Adam leaned down and captured Tommy's lips with his own. Immediately, Tommy took control of the kiss. He licked the seam of Adam's lips and gently probed them open until Adam let his tongue inside.  Adam moaned into his mouth and Tommy smiled, licking into Adam's mouth and sucking gently on his lower lip.  It didn't take very long for the kiss to go from tender and loving to heated and hungry.  Adam slid his hand into Tommy's fringe, combing it and then tugging to bare Tommy's neck. 

Tommy groaned in pleasure as Adam licked a stripe up the side of his neck.  He tried to keep his arms relaxed, tried to just let the silk ropes hold his tension but he was having trouble because he wanted to touch.  Adam must have sensed his need because he slid a hand up one of Tommy's arms and laced their fingers together.  Tommy gripped his hand tightly and Adam sucked his earlobe into his mouth, tonguing lightly at the metal piercings.  Tommy shivered and he heard Adam laugh softly. 

Adam came back to his mouth, bringing his other hand up and tracing Tommy's lips with his finger.  Tommy darted his tongue out and licked the tip before nipping it lightly with his teeth.  Adam pulled it back and pouted, sticking it into his own mouth and sucking it.  "Ouch," he teased.

Tommy playfully snapped his teeth again and Adam crushed their mouths together.  Their tongues danced alongside each other until Adam pulled back and licked his way down toward Tommy's chest.  Tommy closed his eyes as Adam sucked up a mark on his collarbone and then made a matching one on the other side.  Tommy tightened his fingers on Adam's as he nibbled his way down towards his nipples. 

He couldn't help but arch his back in anticipation of Adam's touch.  He bit his lip as Adam licked circles around both nipples but never actually touched them.  "Fuck, please," he asked.

His eyes were closed and he imagined that Adam was smirking at him but he didn't care, he just wanted a tongue on his fucking nipple.  "Fuck!" he yelled out as he felt Adam's fangs slide into the skin surrounding his right nipple.  Pleasure shot through him making his dick twitch on his stomach and a drop of precome leak out.  He dug his nails into Adam's hand, not wanting him to stop and almost whining when he did. 

He didn't need to complain for long because Adam immediately shifted over to the other side, licking the nipple with the flat of his tongue, poking at it with the tip until it was peaked and hard.  He blew on it lightly and Tommy's breath caught in his throat at the sensation.  He thrust up against Adam when he felt wet heat surround his nipple and Adam swirled his tongue around it, only grazing this one with his fangs before moving on. 

Tommy let Adam's hand go as it slipped out of his and trailed lightly down his arm, just as Adam's tongue trailed lightly down his chest.  He squirmed and giggled when Adam's tongue tickled his belly button.  "Adam," he gasped out breathlessly in protest.

Adam just gripped his hips a bit tighter and drove his tongue into Tommy's belly button even further.  Tommy laughed harder, writhing under Adam's assault, yanking a bit on his bonds, begging Adam to stop.  "Please, please, don't, Adam?"

Adam gave him one final lick before moving over to his hipbone.  Tommy bit back a moan as Adam licked at his hipbone before sucking up a mark and within moments Tommy knew he was going to have a matching one on the other side.  Adam seemed to like symmetry, he never marked one side without marking the other.  Tommy yanked a bit on the ropes when Adam did switch sides because this time he used fangs and pleasure hit Tommy like an electric shock. 

"Fuck," he cried out.   

Adam rubbed his thumbs over the matching marks, grinning up at Tommy.  "Fuck, Tommy, if you could only see yourself.  You have no idea how hot you look right now.  Your lips are swollen and red from me kissing them, you have my bite marks up and down your torso and fuck Tommy, your eyes, so much desire and passion."

Tommy felt his face flush red at Adam's praise.  Adam kissed his hipbone and Tommy spread his legs as Adam shouldered them apart.  He closed his eyes until Adam nipped playfully at his inner thigh.  Opening his eyes, he yelped, "What the fuck?"

"Want you to watch me," Adam growled.

Tommy gazed right down into Adam's lust darkened eyes. 

"Good kitty," Adam said softly and Tommy laughed and then he wasn't laughing anymore when Adam opened his mouth and swallowed him down.

He thrust up into Adam's mouth, fighting against the hold Adam had on his hips.  The tight wet heat surrounding his cock, coupled with Adam's devil tongue was very quickly making him come undone.  He felt Adam's tongue probing at his slit, shivered a bit when he felt Adam's fangs graze his skin just as his thumb rubbed lightly over his claiming scar. 

He could feel his orgasm building at the base of his spine, feel the tingly pleasure start to spread and then Adam pulled off.

"No," he moaned in protest.

Adam just slid hands under his butt and lifted him up, spreading his cheeks. 

"Oh fuck," he cried out just as Adam licked over his hole. 

Adam's hands tightened on his hips, his thumb pressing directly over the claiming scar as Tommy felt his tongue push past the muscle and slip inside him.  He tried to thrust down onto Adam's tongue, but he was holding his hips too tightly.  "Fuck, Adam, please," he begged.

Except Adam was relentless, licking him, tongue-fucking him, driving him to the brink and then pulling him back until Tommy was a writhing incoherent mess and finally just let Adam have his way.  When he gave up that last vestige of control Adam pulled back, grabbed the lube, slicked up his cock, and slid right into Tommy's body.  Tommy arched up into him but Adam's weight pressed him back down.  He wrapped Tommy's legs around his waist and pressed their chests together. 

Tommy opened his mouth as Adam licked his way inside and slowly started to thrust.  His cock throbbed with need, trapped between them, the only friction the movement of Adam's belly as he thrust in and out of Tommy's body.  Tommy's hands tightened into fists as wave after wave of pleasure threatened to overtake him but never quite seemed to wash over him.  He begged Adam in need and frustration.  "Please, please, just please, oh fuck I need to come.  Please."

Adam swiveled his hips in response, hitting Tommy's prostate and making him see stars but not pushing him over the edge just yet. 

"Together," Adam growled, lacing the fingers of both their hands together, using them for leverage.  "We come together.  Understand?"

Tommy nodded, gripping Adam's fingers tightly, squeezing his muscles around Adam's cock until his rhythm started to falter.  Adam licked down his neck, sucked up a mark.  "Now," he ordered and sank his fangs into Tommy's skin.

Tommy's vision went white as pleasure exploded throughout his body.  There were so many focal points he couldn't pinpoint it down to just one.  There was pleasure mixed with pain coming from Adam's fangs in his neck, indescribable pleasure from where Adam was pressing on his scar, and it felt like his dick was exploding.  Somewhere in his head, he knew that he wasn't spurting copious amounts of fluid out of his cock but it certainly felt like it as the warm liquid spread between their bellies.  He clung to Adam, holding onto him, trying to let him ground him as he felt like he was floating above their bodies.  He felt Adam fucking him through his orgasm, felt when Adam shuddered with his own and then his legs slipped down to the bed as Adam settled down onto him, elbows framing his face.

His heart still pounding, he felt Adam dropping soft gentle kisses all over his face, murmuring over and over words of love.  Tommy wanted so badly to answer him but his brain was still completely offline.  So he just lay there, basking in Adam's love and care.  Adam brushed the fringe off his forehead, and nuzzled their noses together.  Tommy managed to smile at that.

Adam reached up and undid the silk ropes around his wrists.  Tommy's arms fell slack onto the bed.  He felt Adam wrap a hand around his wrist, gingerly rubbing at it, working the circulation back to normal.  He opened his eyes briefly as Adam kissed each finger and all around his wrist before repeating the gesture on the other hand.  Tommy moaned softly when Adam pulled out of him and settled down by his side.  Instinctively he curled up against Adam's chest, his leg sliding in between Adam's, Adam's arms wrapping tightly around his back pulling him even closer.

Tommy kissed Adam's chest as Adam reached up and stroked his hair, whispering 'thank you' over and over again.  Tommy just smiled, sliding his hand down Adam's arm, lacing their fingers together again.  He pulled back then to look up at Adam.  "Feel better?"

Adam nodded, bending down to press their lips together.  Tommy opened up to Adam's tongue and it was a gentle kiss, full of love and trust.  He licked over Adam's fangs, tasting the slight tang of copper still clinging to them.  Tommy broke the kiss.  "I like the taste of me in your mouth."

Adam licked his lips mischievously.  "I like the taste of you in my mouth too."

Tommy blushed and kissed Adam's chin.  "So, better?" he pressed.

Adam took a deep breath.  "Yeah.  Better.  Fuck, Tommy you have no idea how you smell to me all the time. Your blood, I can't even explain, it's like the best thing I've ever smelled but add in arousal and the scent you give off when you come?  And it multiplies it like by a million percent and I just want to gorge myself on you.  It's so fucking intoxicating."

Tommy grabbed him by the biceps and squeezed.  "But you didn't.  And you didn't that day either, no matter how much you needed or wanted to keep drinking, you stopped."

"Only because Terrence was there to stop me."

Tommy sent him a withering glare.  "You honestly expect me to believe that you couldn't have just thrown Terrence aside and kept drinking until you drained me dry?  Because I know you and I know him.  He's strong, but even he's no match for you when you are in full-on Alpha Vamp mode.  No, some part of you knew you had to stop."  Tommy released one of Adam's arms and brought his hand up to cup Adam's cheek.

"He may have brought you out of the fog but you were the one that stopped.  Just like you stopped tonight, even though, as you put it 'It's so fucking intoxicating.'  You stopped Adam.  You, nobody else.  I love you and I trust you with my life.  I think it's about time you started trusting yourself again."

Adam stared at him for a moment and then a slow easy smile broke out over his face, chasing away the worry that had sat there for weeks.  "You're amazing Tommy Joe.  I don't deserve you, but I’m totally keeping you."

He wrapped his arms back around Tommy, pulling him close into his chest and Tommy settled back down, splaying his hand over Adam's heart.  "You do deserve me," he muttered.

As Tommy's breathing evened out and he drifted off to sleep, Adam kissed the top of his head.  "Not yet, but I'm working on it," he said softly.

Tommy felt wakefulness pulling at the edges and he shifted a bit.  His shoulders ached a bit and the memory of last night came flooding back.  His face heated at the memory of it even as his cock started to fill.  He pressed a kiss to Adam's chest before opening his eyes.  Sunlight was filtering into the room through the curtains and he could tell that Adam was still asleep.  Carefully, he pulled his leg out from between Adam's and started to pull out of his arms because his bladder had suddenly woken up and told him he needed to go take a piss. 

He pulled back a little and had to bite back a groan when Adam's arms tightened around him.  "Still sleeping, don't want you to move yet," Adam mumbled.

Tommy settled back into Adam's arms and tried to ignore his bladder but he couldn't keep still.  He kept shifting and moving in the bed.

"Tommy, stop moving or so help me I will tie you up again and fuck you right through to the fucking car parked in the driveway."

"Fuck, Adam, I have to piss."

Adam immediately let him go and Tommy scrambled off the bed.

"Why didn't you say?"  Adam called after him as Tommy scooted into the bathroom.

"Because," Tommy called out quickly followed by a low hissed out, "yessss."

Adam chuckled. 

"Bastard."

"Hey, I didn't know," Adam protested. 

Tommy rolled his eyes as he went to the sink to wash his hands. 

"Don't roll your eyes at me," Adam warned.

"Fuck, how do you do that?" Tommy grumbled.

"Because I know you," Adam answered back, smiling as Tommy appeared in the bathroom doorway.  "Now come back to bed, I'm not ready to get up yet."

Tommy sauntered over to the bed, smirking at Adam, putting a little swagger in his step.  Adam threw his head back and laughed just as Tommy leapt onto the bed landing beside him.  Adam pulled him into his chest, kissing him deeply before settling him back down by his side under his arm.  Tommy rested his head on Adam's shoulder, his hand splayed out on his chest, right over Adam's heart.  He drew little circles with his finger until Adam reached up and took his hand in his and held it, lacing their fingers together.

He nuzzled Adam's skin and Adam stroked a hand up and down his arm. They dozed for long enough that the sun rose higher in the sky and the light in the room started to shift.

"We should get up," Adam said softly, kissing the top of Tommy's head.

"Don't wanna," Tommy complained, pushing in closer to Adam's chest only to have his stomach growl loudly in protest.  His face flushed red as Adam started to laugh.

"Your stomach says otherwise.  Come on, let's shower and get downstairs, Danielle is a fabulous cook."

He slid out of bed and pulled Tommy with him, who grumbled all the way to the shower.

"So, where are you taking me?"

Adam glanced over at Tommy and smiled playfully.  "You'll find out."

Tommy tried to glare at him but couldn't, ended up grinning at him goofily before looking back out the window at the passing scenery.  Danielle's breakfast had been the shit.  Ham, bacon, sausage, eggs for him.  And she'd made some fruity parfait laced with blood for Adam.  Tommy had made a horrible face at the mere idea of mixing blood with fruit, but Adam had drunk every last drop and asked for more.  Danielle had blushed and shoved them out the door with a picnic basket and orders not to come back until after dinner.   She'd kissed Tommy on the cheek, patted Adam's cheek, winked at him and then shut the door.

They'd been driving for about an hour when they finally pulled off the highway and turned onto what looked to be a one-lane road to nowhere.  He turned to look at Adam again.  "You sure know where you're going?"

"Yup."

Tommy watched him for a minute, shrugged and went back to looking out the window.  They drove for maybe another thirty minutes before Adam pulled off again onto what truly was a dirt road to the middle of nowhere.  Tommy held onto the handle above the window as the SUV they'd borrowed from Danielle bounced over the terrain.  When they finally came to a stop Tommy let go of the breath he hadn't even realized he'd been holding.

"We're here!" Adam announced happily, clamoring out of the car.

Tommy followed him and looked around, seeing nothing but trees and wilderness.  "Where is here exactly?"

Adam turned to him, smiling widely.  "The middle of nowhere." 

Tommy raised an eyebrow and Adam's face turned serious.

"Okay, Danielle told me about this place.  It's a nature preserve.  No one's allowed to hunt here and no one's really allowed to come here."  He paused for a moment, closing his eyes and inhaling deeply.  "And there's not a human around anywhere for miles."

Tommy's heart started to pound.  "What are you saying Adam?"

"I'm saying, now's your chance. You can shift and run to your heart's content.  You can even hunt if you want to."

"Hunt?"

"Me of course, but yeah, you can hunt.  I know you never really talk about it, but sometimes you get this look in your eyes, and I know that look because I get it myself.  The need to just let go, to just let the beast inside you free, let it run and have its way."  He shrugged and gestured around.  "You can do that here.  Danielle told me about this place a while ago, I come up here when I feel that need to let go.  I hunt small animals, rabbits, foxes, and the like.  Nothing big or anything anyone will notice or miss.  I obviously can't let you hunt something large, but you can hunt me."

Tommy licked his lips nervously, his heart racing and his mouth dry.  "Hunt you?"

Adam's eyes flashed silver and he flashed Tommy a predatory grin.  "Yeah, you know if I don't get to you first."

Tommy swallowed hard, his eyes flashing yellow before going back to brown.  "Get me first?"

Adam gave him a feral smile.  "You didn't think you were going to be the only one hunting did you?"

Tommy just stared at him, unsure of what to say, but he could feel his Cat scratching to get out, to get on with the hunt.  He watched as Adam closed his eyes and inhaled deeply, a smirk curving his lips up. 

"Whataya say Tommy Joe?  You up for a game of Cat and Vamp?  Because your Cat sure as hell is."

Tommy watched him a bit nervously.  They'd played games before, but nothing like this, he was excited and scared all at the same time and he knew Adam was enjoying the scent of his fear because he could see it in his eyes.  He jutted his chin out defiantly.  "Yeah, I'm up for it.  I get a head start?"

Adam smiled indulgently, inclining his head.  "Of course.  Plus, you need to strip, unless you want to ride back naked."  He glanced at his watch.  "You've got two minutes before I start hunting you, starting," he paused, pushing a few buttons on his watch, "Starting now."

"Fuck!" Tommy protested, quickly stripping off his clothes.  He threw them at Adam and shifted into a snow leopard before disappearing into the woods.  He ran, no real destination in mind, just running until he heard the sound of running water.  He darted left toward it and when he found the stream he splashed through it, knowing it would throw Adam off his scent.  He paused for a moment after thoroughly drenching himself and stuck his nose up in the air.  He closed his eyes, sniffing the air.

He turned to the right.  There.  About a mile away.  Adam was swiftly making his way through the trees in his direction, but not directly.  He cocked his head, listening, smelling.  Adam was playing, he was sure of it.  Most likely he'd heard him splashing through the water.  Time to run again. 

He tore off in the opposite direction from Adam, blindly running through the trees for a few minutes before starting to circle back.  His intent was to circle around and come up behind Adam, but as he paused sniffing the air, he realized that Adam had changed direction again.  He was heading right for him.  The water must not have been enough to disguise his scent.  Adrenalin surged through his body as he swiftly changed direction himself, sensing Adam do the same. 

He pushed harder, ran faster, suddenly realizing eluding Adam was going to be much harder than he originally thought.  He raced back toward the stream and slowed when he got there.  Gently, he stepped into the water, ignoring the cold temperature of it.  He padded as silently as he could upstream.  He whipped his head around when he heard a twig crack off to his left.  He leapt out of the water and raced up the hill.  His breath came fast and his heart pounded, he could hear Adam behind him now, could feel him bearing down on him.

He risked a look behind him and couldn't see Adam but he knew he was there.  He could smell him.  He cut left and then right and then left again.  He didn't want this to be over yet, he was having too much fun.  He cut right again and raced back down the hill, knowing instinctively that Adam was running parallel to him now.  He glanced over his shoulder and saw a blur moving through the trees.  He pounded the ground harder, pushing himself to run faster.  His heart was practically pounding out of his chest.  He cut toward the left, toward the blur and put himself on a headlong course with Adam, nipping at him as he veered at the last minute.

Adam's laughter echoed through the trees and Tommy's mouth curled into a grin baring his teeth.  He licked his jowls and he spun around, heading back toward Adam.  Just as Adam got near, Tommy leapt in the air, opening his mouth to grab Adam, only to have Adam slam him down onto the ground and straddle him, his hands wrapped around his throat. 

He snarled and growled, and snapped at Adam playfully.  Adam pinned him to the ground, his weight and strength holding down his body, while his hands pressed Tommy's paws into the ground.

"Do you submit?"

Tommy growled and nipped at Adam's face.  Adam laughed and just pressed harder, nuzzling into Tommy's furry neck.  His fangs came out and he snapped them at Tommy.  He grinned down at him triumphantly.  "Do you submit, Tommy Joe?"

Tommy shifted underneath him until he was blinking up at Adam, his chest heaving and his skin flushed.  "Wasn't ready to stop," he huffed out.

Adam laughed softly, his breath ghosting over Tommy's skin.  "I never said we were done.  I just won this round."  He leaned down and licked a stripe up Tommy's neck, breaking the skin just for a sip before licking the wounds closed again.  He pushed off of Tommy, pointedly ignoring Tommy's rapidly growing erection much to Tommy's disappointment.  He stood up and reached his hand back down to Tommy, helping him up off the ground.  He brushed the dirt and leaves off Tommy's back and ass, giving him a playful smack when he finished. 

Tommy batted his hand at him playfully but pushed into Adam's touch when he reached up and brushed his hair off his forehead.  "My pretty kitty.  Your new time starts now.  Better hurry."

Tommy's eyes widened in surprise and he let out what could only be considered a shocked squeak.  "Adam!" he protested but took off running.  He waited until he was out of site before shifting into a panther.  He hoped whatever Danielle had packed them was full of protein because this was gonna exhaust him. 

He ran in and out of the trees, he avoided the stream this time.  It was just too cold and it hadn't worked anyway.  He'd have to avoid Adam by hunting him instead.  He paused in his running and shifted to a lion, his sense of smell was much better as a lion.  He raised his head and sniffed the air.  Adam was putting out enough pheromones to choke an elephant.  He sneezed and instantly froze.  He could tell the very second Adam shifted direction and headed toward him.  He shook his head and started prowling toward Adam. 

He could tell that Adam was following the sound and not the scent so he stopped and stood still. He sensed when Adam did the same.  They both stood still for a very long while and then Tommy smelled something on the air, another cat.  His lips curled up in a snarl as he sensed Adam run off in the other direction.  He knew it wouldn't take Adam very long to realize the other cat wasn't him but it would give him just the time he needed to get the jump on him.  Tommy ran through the trees until he could smell Adam not too far away.  He shifted to a tabby and climbed up the nearest tree where he crawled out onto a limb and shifted back to a lion.  He lay down on the branch and waited, his tail swishing in the air. 

He watched as Adam finally came into his line of sight.  He slowed his breathing, stopped his tail and just lay there, watching.

"Here, kitty, kitty.  My pretty kitty Tommy.  Pretty nifty trick letting that other cat pull me off your trail.  But I’m back and I know you're close because I can smell you.  Kitty –"

Tommy lay still until Adam was directly under the tree branch he was lying on and then just as Adam was about to move away he sprang out of the tree landing right on top of Adam.

"Oof," Adam grunted as Tommy landed on him, pressing him into the ground and knocking all the air out of him.

Tommy felt Adam wrap his hands around his rib cage and roll them but he dug his back claws into the ground and rolled them right back until he was back on top of Adam, sitting on his belly, his front paws pinning Adam's shoulders to the ground.  Adam snarled at him and Tommy just growled back, snapping his jaws dangerously close to Adam's face.

Adam bucked and struggled underneath Tommy who bent down, opened his jaw and gently bit down on Adam's neck.  Adam immediately stilled.  "Tommy," he warned softly.

Tommy growled in return but he let go of Adam's neck, licking him up the side of his face making Adam laugh and go "EWWW, Tommy!" at the same time.  Tommy sat back on his haunches, the smug look on his face something that shouldn't have been possible on the face of a lion but somehow it was on Tommy.

Adam rolled his eyes.  "Fine.  You win."

Immediately Tommy shifted back to his human self.  He grinned down at Adam.  "So, are you submitting?"

Adam huffed out a frustrated sigh.  Tommy pressed harder on his shoulders.  "Do you submit?"

Adam's eyes flashed silver for a brief second as if it pained him to admit defeat, which Tommy knew it most likely did.  "Yes, fine, yes, I submit. You win this round."

Tommy let his shoulders go, grinning at him smugly before he went to stand up.  Adam grabbed his hips instead and held him in place.  He ground his erection into Tommy's ass and Tommy felt his own cock spring to life immediately.  Tommy's eyes slipped closed as he pushed his ass down against Adam's cock.  Adam's fingers dug into his waist and slid up to wrap around Tommy's shoulders and pull him down into a possessive kiss.

Their tongues danced into their routine battle for dominance but Tommy didn't give in this time like he usually did. He'd won the position to be in control and he wasn't letting go of it so quickly. He let a self-satisfied smile slide into place when Adam moaned into his mouth and gripped his shoulders that much more tightly. He bent down, resting his elbows on the ground on either side of Adam's head. He plundered Adam's mouth with his tongue, sucking on it and swallowing every last sound Adam made. When he pulled away he was breathless and Adam's lips were pink and swollen.

"You have too many clothes on," Tommy grunted, sliding back and reaching for Adam's zipper. Adam lifted his hips up, letting Tommy pull his jeans down to about mid-thigh.  He watched with glazed eyes as Tommy bent down and sucked his whole length into his mouth.

 Tommy tongued all around the hard length in his mouth, sliding a couple of fingers inside his mouth right next to Adam's dick. He licked them both, getting them both as slick as possible.  Then he pulled his fingers out and reached around, rubbing around his hole, pushing down onto his finger, hissing at the burning feeling of his muscle stretching around it.  He'd barely adjusted to the intrusion when he pushed the second finger in and started scissoring them, stretching the muscle. 

"Fuck, Tommy," Adam breathed out, "You look so fucking hot opening yourself up for me."

Tommy hmm'd quietly around Adam's dick making him gasp before pulling off and moving forward.  He grabbed Adam's cock with his hand, positioned it at his entrance and dropped down.  He closed his eyes and bit his lip as the head of Adam's cock breached his entrance.  The _oh fuck too much feeling_ of the stretch made him whimper but, fuck, he wanted it so badly he sank down until Adam was fully seated inside him.  He fell forward onto Adam's chest, lying there, trying to adjust to the painful yet pleasurable burning stretch and the overwhelming feeling of fullness.

Tommy felt Adam's hands rub up and down his back soothingly but he could tell from the tenseness in Adam's thighs that he was holding back. He took a deep breath and pushed himself back up, looking down into those ice blue eyes.  And then he started to ride. 

"Fuck," Adam whispered, his eyes fluttering shut, his nails digging into Tommy's skin.

Tommy moved his hands back to Adam's shoulders, and using them for leverage, he started to fuck himself on Adam's cock. He started out slow and shallow, gradually changing it to faster and deeper until Adam was bottoming out inside him with every thrust down and almost slipping out with each time he lifted back up.  Adam's feet scrabbling for a grip on the pine needle covered forest floor barely registered with Tommy. All he knew was that he was in control, Adam wasn't matching his thrusts because he couldn't and it made Tommy want to pop. 

Frantically, he shoved Adam's shirt up, baring his belly and chest because he was close and Adam would kill him if he stained his shirt.  He clenched down hard around Adam because even though he was about to go off, he wanted Adam to go first.  It rarely happened and Tommy hoped that the element of surprise and the hint of danger that had preceded their coupling would be enough to give him that little bit of an advantage. 

"Fuck, Tommy," Adam growled, gripping his hips tightly and trying desperately to thrust up into him.

Tommy ground himself back down on Adam and clenched his muscles again, grinning in triumph when it tore a scream from Adam's throat and Tommy felt his come start to coat his insides.  He let go of Adam's shoulder and reached for his cock.  He wrapped his hand around it, fisted it a few times, doing that twisty thing at the top that he liked so much, and just as he felt his orgasm start to uncurl at the base of his spine, he pressed his thumb over the slit and then let go. 

"Yes!" he cried out as he closed his eyes and felt come spurting out of his cock.  He saw spots dancing behind his eyelids as Adam pressed his thumb right over his scar and every nerve ending in his body felt like it was shooting off fireworks of pleasure.  He slumped forward onto Adam's chest and never even felt Adam's arms wrap around him, pulling him in close.

Tommy stretched and realized he was naked. Naked under a blanket. Outdoors. And then it all came rushing back and his cock hardened at the same time his cheeks flushed.  He pushed himself up onto his elbows and looked around, only belatedly realizing he'd been lying with his head in Adam's lap.

"Hey, you're awake."

Tommy blushed even harder.  "How long?"

Adam reached out and stroked a finger down the side of his face.  "Twenty minutes? A half hour? Not long really."

"But, how, I'm-"

"Honey, I'm a Vampire, remember?  Super speedy.  I had the blankets and the picnic basket back here in under ten seconds.  It didn't take much longer to spread one out, carry you over to it, cover you, and start unpacking the picnic basket.  Then I just lay here waiting for you to come back to me.  I knew that shifting took it out of you but I had no idea it would take that much out of you."

It was Tommy's turn to smirk.  "You think that was all just shifting?"

Adam tilted his head curiously.

"It was the shifting, and the hunt and the sex.  All of it mixed together sent me over the edge and made me feel like my head was going to pop off.  The hunt is like an aphrodisiac but you probably already knew that.  Isn't it like that for you?"

Adam smiled slyly and reached out to lace their fingers together, pulling him until Tommy's head was resting on his thigh again and started stroking the fingers of his free hand through it.  "Yeah, it's definitely like that for me."

Tommy laughed softly.  "So that's why you wanted to do this.  You knew it was gonna make you horny, or well, hornier than usual."

Adam gave his hair a little tug.  "Hey!"

Tommy winced and looked up at Adam.

"I really did want to give you a chance to get some free roaming time.  Seems like you needed it.  You haven't been this relaxed since –"

"Since you were kidnapped and almost tortured to death and to save you I almost ended up dying myself?"

Adam swallowed hard and looked away.  "Yeah, since then."

Tommy watched him for a moment and then reached his hand up to touch the side of Adam's face.  "Hey, I only meant you probably needed this too.  You've been stretched tighter than a drum, you're still tense.  I didn't mean to, fuck –" Tommy sighed, dropping his hand and burrowing deeper into Adam's lap, wrapping his arm around his thigh. 

He bit at Adam's thigh, wondering when or if they were ever going to get out from under the black cloud that seemed to follow them wherever they went. Fucking Danny. The mere thought that Adam was letting that idiot cast a pall over their vacation infuriated Tommy and he wasn't going to let either of them be dragged down by that sorry excuse for a vamp. A little growl slipped past his lips as he bit at Adam's thigh again.

He reached up and cupped Adam's cheek, determined to shake Adam out of his melancholy. Adam closed his eyes and pressed into it and then Tommy's stomach growled. Adam's eyes flew open as Tommy felt blood rush to his face again.  Adam threw back his head and laughed.  "I guess I should stop being all emo and feed you instead."

Tommy moved to sit up and Adam pressed a hand down onto his chest.  "Stay there, when I said feed you, I meant literally."

Tommy watched as Adam pulled the picnic basket closer and started digging through it.  The idea of Adam feeding him made him nervous and made his dick hard all at the same time. Adam turned back to him and must have seen the conflicting emotions on his face.   

He held a piece of salmon between his fingers, a soft smile on his face.  "You know, feeding your mate is one of the most sensual things you can do."

Tommy stared at him, stared at the salmon in his hand.  He licked his lips and took a deep breath, knowing what he needed to say.  "It's also one of the most trusting things you can do.  Because you don't know –"

"What might have been done to your food," Adam finished in a whisper.

He started to pull his hand back and lightning fast Tommy reached out and grabbed his wrist.  Adam's eyes widened in surprise.  Tommy tightened his grip on Adam's wrist and pulled it closer until his fingers were almost touching his lips.  He closed his eyes and opened his mouth, darting his tongue out to lap the salmon out of Adam's fingers and bring it into his mouth.  He chewed slowly, savoring the taste of the cold grilled salmon, with just a hint of sweet and a dash of spice.  When he finished chewing he swallowed and opened his eyes, pulling Adam's fingers into his mouth, licking them clean.  He flicked his eyes up to meet Adam's when he moaned.

Tommy smiled and pulled Adam's fingers back out of his mouth.  He let go of Adam's wrist, caressing the tattoo gently with his thumb before completely releasing it.  "More please."

Adam looked at him for a moment and then picked off another piece of salmon and held it out for Tommy to take.  Tommy smiled at him, before guiding his fingers back to his mouth again and tonguing the salmon into his mouth.  Adam closed his eyes and let out a shuddery breath as Tommy closed his eyes and chewed again.

Tommy shifted around a bit until he was lying flat on his back, his head on Adam's thigh looking up at him.  He smiled impishly.  "Okay, ready for more."

Adam threw back his head and laughed but then proceeded to feed Tommy the whole piece of salmon that Danielle had packed for them, along with some cold chicken.  When Tommy finished the chicken Adam got the thermos of cold milk out of the basket and Tommy sat up.  He took the thermos from Adam and drank it down in several greedy swallows, not even noticing Adam watching him with amusement.  He finished and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand.  "What?"

Adam chuckled.  "Nothing.  It's just, seeing you drink milk like that – that's probably when you most seem like a cat."

Tommy rolled his eyes and capped the thermos, putting it back into the basket and pulling the other one out.  He handed it to Adam, who took it reluctantly.  "What, you aren't gonna drink that?"

"No, it's not, it's just –"

"I've seen you drink before. Fuck, you've fed from me. You're just afraid I'll look at you differently because of what happened. And that is complete bullshit. Now would you just drink the damn stuff already?  I'm sure you need it just as badly as I did." He took the thermos back and poured out a cup of blood for Adam and handed it over. "Now drink, damn it."

Adam stared at him for a second before slumping his shoulders a bit in defeat and taking the cup from him. When he tipped his head back and drank, his fangs dropping down, Tommy smiled. "See? Trust."

Tommy went back to digging through the picnic basket to see if Danielle had included any dessert.  He practically crowed with delight when he found some strawberries, raspberries and chocolate sauce.  Or rather some tub of stuff that advertised itself as chocolate dipping sauce.  Whatever, didn't matter, it was chocolate. 

He turned back to Adam who was just finishing his thermos.  He quietly passed Adam a napkin and stowed the thermos back in the basket for him.  When Adam tossed the napkin onto the blanket, Tommy settled back down with his head in Adam's lap and passed him the fruit and the chocolate dipping stuff.  He met Adam's eyes and fluttered his eyelashes, "Feed me, please?" 

Adam laughed softly.  "Spoiled kitty."

Tommy turned his head and nuzzled his nose at Adam's belly.  "Your spoiled kitty."

Adam brushed a strand of hair off Tommy's forehead before leaning down and kissing him softly.  "Yeah, my pretty spoiled kitty.  Want some dessert now?"

Tommy smiled and nodded his head enthusiastically.  Adam laughed again and grabbed a strawberry, dragging it through the chocolate and dangling it over Tommy's mouth.  Tommy leaned up a bit and nipped at it just as Adam jerked it out of his reach.  They both laughed as Tommy pouted.  Adam went to do it again, but this time Tommy grabbed his wrist and brought it down so he could eat the strawberry.  He licked the little bit of chocolate off Adam's fingers and nipped at them with his teeth. 

"Ooh, frisky kitty."

Tommy snorted.  "Feed me the fucking dessert, Lambert."

"Bossy kitty."

Tommy rolled his eyes.  "You gonna keep doing that all day?"

"Why don't you like it?"

"Didn't say I didn't like it," Tommy said around another mouthful of strawberry and chocolate.

Adam just hmmm'd softly and grabbed another strawberry.  He fed Tommy all the strawberries and all of the raspberries and most of the chocolate until Tommy was lying with his hand over his stomach. 

"I think I ate too much," he groaned.

Adam chuckled, kissing his forehead again.  "Nah, you needed all that.  Just give your Cat a chance to digest it.  You used a lot of energy this morning."

"Mmm," Tommy mused, his eyes slipping shut.

"You gonna get that?" Tommy asked, looking over at Adam as he drove them back to the B&B.

"Nope. Want today to last just a little while longer. I can face whatever reality is throwing at me in a little while."

"Okay," Tommy said as Adam's phone went silent again.

"What, you want me to answer it?"

Tommy shrugged. "It is the third time they've called in ten minutes. S'probably important, whatever it is."

Adam frowned. "Well, it can wait until we're back at Danielle's. Besides, the reception out here is crap. It'll just cut in and out and be full of static."

Tommy quirked an eyebrow, because he certainly wasn't buying that bullshit. "Really? You know you can just say you don't want to answer it. I’m not going to judge you."

Rolling his eyes, Adam snorted. "Fine. I don't want to answer it. I'll get the message when we get back, while you take a shower. Because, you reek."

"Whatever," Tommy chuckled, flipping Adam the bird.

They joked and laughed the rest of the way back until Tommy was clutching at his sides as they tumbled into the room together.

"Go get cleaned up," Adam slapped him on the back, pushing him gently toward the bathroom. "You smell like –"

"Shut up Lambert, unless you want me to tell you what you smell like."

Adam's squawk of protest followed Tommy all the way to the bathroom and he was halfway through his shower before he finally stopped laughing. After he'd dried off he went back out into the bedroom in search of some underwear only to find Adam sitting on the bed, his phone in his hand and a look of shock on his face.

"Adam?" Tommy asked tentatively, a cold finger of fear curling up in his belly and growing steadily into a fist reaching for his heart. "Is everything okay?"

"It's Danny," Adam said hollowly.

The fear in Tommy's belly reached up and squeezed his heart just as it started to pound in his chest. His mouth went dry and his palms went clammy. "What about Danny?" he asked through clenched teeth.

Adam looked up and met his eyes. "He's dead."

Tommy felt his legs go out from under him and Adam barely reached him in time. His arm around Tommy's waist, he guided both of them back to the bed to sit down.

"What? How? When?" Tommy didn't know which question to ask first.

"Terrance called me. It was his shifter."

"The little blond spotted leopard we had dinner with not too long ago?"

"Yeah, her. Micheala called me. The girl, the shifter, her name is Melissa, Lissie for short, but Danny refused to call her that, called her Crystal instead. She hated it. She hated him." Adam paused, shaking his head.

Tommy dropped a hand onto Adam's thigh. "What happened?" he asked softly.

"She poisoned him. Gave him dead blood to drink and when he passed out she gutted him and cut off his head. Micheala said when she and one of the other council members arrived Melissa was standing over his body, still covered in his blood. She was in shock. All she kept saying was 'I couldn't let him do it anymore. Not to anyone else. Ever.' She just kept repeating it over and over again."

"Wow. So um, what happens now?"

"I honestly don't know. This is the first time a Vamp's shifter has killed their Vamp. Micheala said the Council was going to take her into their custody. There's going to be an investigation."

"Do we need to go home?"

Those words seemed to snap Adam out of his fugue state because his gaze suddenly focused and his eyes found their way to Tommy's. "No. She specifically said we were to stay put, enjoy our time together. She said she'd keep me posted."

They sat next to each other in silence, Adam slowly stroking his thumb over the back of Tommy's hand.

Hours later, after an abnormally quiet dinner and the two of them going to bed early, Tommy woke to find his wrist in Adam's hand, his thumb stroking his scar and a thoughtful look on his face.  He watched him for several minutes before Adam finally met his gaze.  Adam's cheeks pinked up a tiny bit and he looked away.  But he continued stroking Tommy's scar.

"How'd you get this?" he whispered softly.

Tommy breathed out a sigh.  He'd been waiting for this question. He was actually surprised it had taken Adam this long to ask it. He was such a possessive bastard at times.  Tommy smiled, his dick twitching at the memory of Adam at his most possessive. 

"It wasn't that long before I met you actually."  Tommy watched Adam's thumb tracing the outline of the scar as his mind went whirling back to that night.  "And you know the person that gave it to me."

Adam's grip on his wrist tightened, his thumb pressing into the scar.  It sent a jolt of desire mixed with pain through Tommy's body and his breath caught in his throat.  He watched as Adam lifted his arm to his face and sniffed.  He held his breath wondering if her scent would still be there, after all this time, after Adam claimed him.

"Delmy," Adam growled out, the nail of his thumb digging into Tommy's skin.

Tommy didn't even have to answer, he knew Adam could tell by the tension in his body.

"How?"

Tommy took a deep breath and shifted a bit in Adam's arms but not much because the grip on his wrist was too tight.  "You know the cover story right?"

"You mean where she betrayed you by fucking your friend?"

Tommy winced because that actually did happen.  "Yeah, well, it's true, but it's not everything. One night we were fucking around and she bit me just as I came. I was mad at first but then she licked it and I could feel the pleasure spike through me again. She smiled at me and promised me it could be so much better but she'd save it for another time. I caught her with her Alpha Vamp the very next night."

Adam was silent for a moment.  "What do you mean you caught her with her Alpha Vamp?"

Tommy could hear the disgust in Adam's voice, if he concentrated hard enough he could probably smell the revulsion coming off of him.  "They were fucking, in her apartment.  I had a key and I walked in on them."

Adam tightened his arms around Tommy just as a shudder went through his body at the memory.

"The guy, her Alpha, just laughed, finished fucking her until they both came and then he left.  But right before he left he stopped by the door, leaned close to my neck and smelled me.  He grabbed my wrist and brought it up to his nose and grinned at her." 

_"If he's not claimed by tomorrow night, I'm doing it."_

"He dropped my wrist and without another glance at me he walked out. I couldn't move because my fucking wrist hurt so bad I thought I was gonna lose my dinner right there in her living room. She slid off the bed and walked over to me, her arms out as if she wanted to hug me.  I backed up until I hit the door."

_"What does he mean Delmy?"_

_"About what?"_

_Tommy felt the rage surge through him and he wrapped his hand around his wrist, trying to will the pain to go away.  "What the fuck does he mean, 'claim me'?  Bite me again?  What?"_

_She took another step closer and Tommy held out his hand.  "Don't.  Don't come any closer.  Tell me what he meant!"_

_She smiled at him.  "Claiming you means you would be mine.  You would belong to me, and by extension to him."_

_Tommy frowned.  "So, what, like you'd own me?"_

_She nodded at him happily._

_"And he would own me too?"_

_Delmy nodded again, taking another step toward him, smiling._

_"Back up Delmy, right the fuck now.  What the fuck does that mean?  Own me?  Like I'd be at your beck and call?  You could drink from me any time?"_

_She grinned at him.  "Yes, wouldn't that be wonderful?  We could always be together then."_

_Tommy's heart pounded as images flashed through his head.  He remembered the first time he shifted, looking up at his mom in shock and seeing the dismay on her face that he'd shifted into a snow leopard. Then her horror when he'd shifted into a lion the next time. The relief they'd all felt when he'd finally shifted into a tabby cat. His parents had eventually talked to him, told him he'd be wanted, warned him to be careful. Those warnings were setting off alarms in his head right now._

_He liked Delmy well enough but he wasn't sure he wanted to be with her forever.  Fuck, he'd never even shifted for her.  She knew he could, because she could smell it, but he'd never done it.  He reached behind him, frantically twisting the doorknob._

_Delmy frowned.  "Tommy?  What are you doing?  Where are you going?"_

_He pulled the door open and stepped out into the hallway. "I'm leaving. Stay the fuck away from me. Keep him the fuck away from me. We're done. Nobody owns me. Ever."_

_He backed down the hall watching her until he stepped into the elevator and the doors closed._

"I went home after that.  I figured my parents and the pack would keep me safe enough until I figured out what the hell I was gonna do.  In the meantime?   A month later I auditioned for you."

"I remember that day," Adam said softly, stroking his thumb gently over the scar, tracing it.  "As soon as I walked in the room, I smelled your fear spike.  You had no idea I was a Vamp did you?"

Tommy shook his head.  "No.  Monte was human, didn't smell like Vamp.  You walked in and I almost bolted.  Not only were you a Vamp but you were strong as fuck and my Cat wanted to roll over right then and bare its belly. Just knowing that scared the shit out of me.  I almost packed up my bass and walked out. I was so fucking scared. I thought my heart was gonna explode out of my chest. And my Cat - my fucking Cat was just scratching to get out.  I had to go let it run later that afternoon."

Adam tightened his arms around him.  He kissed the top of Tommy's head.  "I know. Your fear permeated the room and your heart was pounding so loudly I could hardly hear anything else.  I knew you were a shifter, knew that before I walked in the room. But when your fear spiked?  I don't know, I just, I felt this overwhelming need to protect you, to keep you safe. I mean, it wasn't a want, it was fucking _need_.  Like I need blood type of need.  You just looked so small and so vulnerable. I watched you raise a hand and brush the fringe off your forehead and I could see your hand shake.  I knew immediately it was the fear, not over the audition, but because of me. And it made me want to make that fear go away."

Tommy looked up at him, realization dawning in his eyes.  "That's why you came over to me first. Introduced yourself to me."

Adam nodded silently. "I just didn't want you to be afraid anymore."

"I remember. You started walking toward me and it was all I could do to stand there and not run. My wrist started hurting like a fucking bitch, and my fucking Cat was practically wailing inside me. It was making my head pound. And then you were there, right in front of me, your hand out expecting me to shake it. I remember clenching my fist, trying so hard to keep it from shaking, to keep you from seeing. I stuck my hand out, grasped yours –"

"And your fear disappeared," Adam smiled.

Tommy grinned back.  "Yeah. The very second our hands touched, I felt this spark and knew in my bones that you would never hurt me, not like that. My Cat immediately wanted to give you its throat."  He shook his head. "Fucking Cat."

Adam chuckled softly, still stroking the scar with his thumb.  "I'd say your Cat's pretty smart."

Tommy blushed.  "Maybe. Anyway, that's why I stayed, figured I'd at least give it a shot.  You weren't making my Cat want to bolt anymore, my fear was gone, and I just felt, I don't know –"

"Safe?"

Tommy raised his eyes to meet Adam's.  "Yeah.  For the first time in a month.  It was like when you touched me, something inside of me, just let go and I felt safe.  Safer than I'd even felt surrounded by my family.  That's when I first started thinking that maybe if I got the gig?  You know, maybe I'd be safe with you.  Just being around you.  I mean I wanted the job before that because playing with you would be amazing.  But –"

"But then you really wanted it because I made you feel safe," Adam said softly.

Tommy nodded his head, unable to look Adam in the eye. "I've always felt safe with you. I never wanted what Delmy was going to do," he shuddered. "I imagine I would have been like Lissie, broken, beat down, who the fuck knows."

Adam tilted his head up until Tommy was looking him in the eye.  "There's nothing wrong with wanting to feel safe.  I know how scared you were that day you auditioned, remember?  I was there. The fear coming off of you was palpable.  And you'd been living with that for a month?  It hurt to feel you that scared, that's why I went over to you first.  When the fear went away, the whole atmosphere of the room lightened up.  You started smiling.  You even laughed at one of my stupid jokes.  That need to protect you?  Just intensified once your fear disappeared, because then all I could think about was making sure you never felt fear like that again. The mere idea of someone doing to you what Danny did to Lissie," Adam paused and Tommy watched as his eyes bled silver and Adam struggled to get himself under control. "I'd kill them."

"I know," Tommy said quietly, reaching up and brushing some hair of Adam's forehead. "And now you don't have to."

"Nope. You're mine now."

Tommy blushed and pushed his head into Adam's chest.  Adam tightened his arm around Tommy.  "You know, does your scar still hurt?"

Tommy pulled back and looked at him questioningly.  "Yeah, why?"

"When does it hurt?"

Tommy frowned and thought for a minute.  "When you touch it, like you were doing earlier, when you pushed on it.  Other than that, it doesn't. Before you claimed me, it would ache if there was another Alpha present, but now, it only hurts if you focus a lot of your attention on it."

Adam pressed his lips together.  "It hurts like that because it's not mine."

"I kinda figured that," Tommy shrugged.

"I can make it mine," Adam said softly.

Tommy's breath caught in his throat, and he chewed nervously on his lower lip.  He looked up at Adam.  "How?"

"Well, I can't make the scar go away, but I can make it mine.  You know how it feels when I bite you?"

Tommy smirked and thrust his hips against Adam, rubbing his semi-hard erection into his thigh.  "Nope, not at all fucker."

Adam rolled his eyes.  "Well, it wouldn't be that good, in fact," he paused to make sure Tommy was listening.  "It will hurt, probably a lot, but I could bite you and make that scar mine.  There'd be nothing left of her.  You'd no longer have any connection to her whatsoever because the scar on your wrist would be from me."

Tommy chewed his lip some more, obviously thinking about Adam's offer. It was something he'd wanted for a while, to be completely Adam's. He loved him, trusted him, and if Adam said he could sever any connection Tommy had to Delmy then he wanted it done.

"Let me make it mine. Let me erase that final bit of bad stuff from your past until there's nothing left but me." The love and possessiveness in those few words washed over Tommy. The fierce determination Tommy felt coming from Adam welled up inside him as well.

With a look of resolve, Tommy met Adam's gaze and nodded his head firmly. "Yes. Please."

 Adam moved forward and crushed their lips together.  Tommy opened up to the kiss, drew his free hand up and tangled it in Adam's hair.  He pressed closer to Adam, sliding a leg over his hip, groaning as their cocks rubbed up against each other.  Tommy thrust against him, delving his tongue deeper into Adam's mouth.  The conversation and digging up Delmy's memory had left him feeling unhappy and, he frowned, dirty.

Adam pulled away as if he'd sensed Tommy's discomfort.  "Stop.  I know what you're thinking.  You are not dirty because you let another Vamp touch you."

"Fuck, how do you do that?"

Adam smirked.  "Ancient Vamp secret. It's just us and I'm going to make you forget all about your past, baby."  He paused then for a moment, a thoughtful look crossed his face.   His eyes met Tommy's.  "I could you know. Make you forget."

Tommy met his gaze. "You could make me forget Delmy?"

Adam nodded slowly.  "I mean, it's not an exact thing, but yeah, I could make you forget getting the original bite.  From now on, I could make it so that when you looked at that scar, you'd only remember me giving it to you.  Think about it carefully because if I do this, there's no way for you to get the memory back.  I would know and I could tell you, but it wouldn't be your memory anymore."

Tommy went still and quiet for a minute.  "Does it have to be now?"

"No, but it works best if it's done during a reclaiming."

Tommy's brow furrowed in thought. The idea was intriguing, forgetting what Delmy did, but the way to keep from repeating past mistakes was to remember them.

"I think I want to keep this memory. Remind me of what could have been and how lucky I am now," he said softly.

Adam's eyes lit up as a delighted grin spread across his face.  "Really?"

Tommy nodded.  "Yeah."

Adam pressed their lips together in a quick kiss before pulling back.  Tommy laughed.  "I take it that makes you happy?"

Adam  smiled.  "Yes, it really does."

"Me keeping a scar made by my ex?"

Adam rolled his eyes and gently bumped their foreheads together.  "No, you wanting to keep it to remind you how lucky you are right now.  I wish I had something like that, I wish you could mark me."

Curiosity piqued at Tommy. "You want me to mark you? I mean, is that even possible?"

"No," Adam replied, a hint of disappointment in his voice. Tommy scooted closer, into Adam's embrace and Adam kissed the top of his head. "I just wish you could."

Tommy drew back and slowly pulled his wrist out of Adam's grasp.  He brought it up between their faces.   "Bite me. Scar me. Make this mark yours. Make it ours. This," he flicked a quick gaze at his wrist and then back to Adam's eyes, "This will be our mark together.  I'll stop wearing the gloves so everyone can see it.  So that you can see it and know that I belong to you and you belong to me."

This time Adam's eyes darkened with lust and possessiveness.  He growled low in his throat and Tommy smiled, his heart pounding faster. 

"God, Tommy, the things you do to me."  Adam's hand reached out, lightning fast and snagged Tommy's wrist, bringing it up to his mouth. 

Tommy closed his eyes as Adam sniffed his wrist, darted his tongue out to lick over the scar.  The sensation sent shivers down Tommy's spine and straight to his dick, which hardened in anticipation.  Still holding his wrist captive, Adam rolled them so Tommy was underneath him, his wrist pinned to the bed near his ear.  Tommy groaned as Adam rutted against him, grinding their cocks together.  He wrapped his free hand around Adam's shoulder, digging his blunt nails into Adam's skin, trying to pull him closer. 

Adam's breath puffed out in little gasps raising goosebumps up on Tommy's skin.  Tommy arched his neck, baring it to Adam. He was rewarded when Adam bent down and licked up the side of it before settling his mouth by Tommy's ear.

"I'll try to be gentle, but –"

He was cut off when Tommy wrapped a leg around his waist, digging one of his heels into Adam's ass.  He knew this was going to be fast and dirty.  Just the idea of Adam biting him was enough to send him into orbit and he could tell it had the same effect on Adam because only a minute ago they were calmly talking and now Tommy was so hard he thought he was going to fucking explode.  "Fuck gentle," he growled, "I can take it.  Just do it, make it yours, make it ours."

He bucked his hips up into Adam and was satisfied when Adam's eyes rolled back a little.  When he looked back at Tommy his eyes had flashed silver and Tommy shivered in anticipation.  He watched as Adam's eyes cleared a little, leaving only the edges silver.  Adam's other hand pulled Tommy's arm down from around his shoulders and laced their fingers together.

"I love you Tommy Joe," Adam said softly.

Tommy swallowed hard and nodded, watched Adam's eyes shift fully to silver.  He took a quick breath in and then Adam bent down and sank his fangs into Tommy's wrist.  Tommy bit his lip but couldn't repress the scream that ripped from his throat as pain seared his wrist. His grasp on Adam's hand tightened until he was gripping it hard as the pain in his other wrist made his gut clench. He tried to focus on the powerful feeling of Adam sucking the blood out of his vein, concentrate on the pulling sensation, the one that normally made him rocket toward an orgasm, but the pain was pretty intense. 

Eyes squeezed shut, Tommy breathed in through his nose and out through his mouth in little pants.  Adam squeezed his hand, thumb stroking over his until Tommy relaxed his grip just a fraction.  Adam rolled his hips down into Tommy and he let out a startled groan as their dicks made contact again.  Immediately, his mind was off the pain and onto how much he needed to get off right the fuck now, but then the pain came back.  As if he read Tommy's mind, Adam pulled off his wrist and immediately sank his teeth into Tommy's neck.

"Fuck!" Tommy moaned out, arching up into Adam, his balls drawing up, and his cock shooting warm liquid all over their bellies.  He barely felt Adam withdraw his fangs and lick the wounds of his neck closed.  He watched through heavy-lidded eyes as Adam bit his thumb and pressed it over the open and bleeding scar on Tommy's wrist.  Instinctively he tried to pull away from the sharp feeling of pain, but Adam's weight held him in place and his hold on Tommy's wrist tensed.

"I know baby, I'm almost done.  I'm mixing our blood together again.  I won't be able to lick the wound closed, it's gonna have to heal on its own, leave a new scar, but the pain should stop as soon as my blood covers the scar."

Tommy closed his eyes and felt Adam's thumb tracing the scar and within seconds the pain was gone, leaving nothing but the afterglow of his orgasm.  He could feel Adam's erection hot and heavy against his thigh.  He let go of Adam's hand and slipped his free hand down between them, wrapping his fist around Adam's cock.  He fisted it a few times, already feeling Adam's breath become erratic.  The hold Adam had on his wrist tightened even more and Adam's thumb pressed against his scar, except this time he felt no pain, only pleasure.           

"Come for me Adam. Please, I want to see you, _feel_ you come. Let go, for me."

Adam shuddered against him and Tommy felt his dick pulse as Adam's come added to the sticky mess of his own.  Adam slumped down on top of him and Tommy pulled his hand out, wrapping it around Adam's shoulders, pulling him in close.  "Thank you," he whispered, bringing his hand up to stroke through Adam's hair. 

Danielle had blueberry crepes and turkey bacon for breakfast for them before sending them off to explore some local shops she thought they would like. Tommy grumbled, but upon seeing Adam's delighted face every time they entered a new store, he finally stopped and just enjoyed being together.  Adam never answered his phone, despite it ringing numerous times. Tommy was grateful, he wanted their little bubble of happiness to continue, even for just a short while. Besides, other than the few words they'd said last night, Adam seemed determined to not bring up Danny or Lissie.

They grabbed lunch at a local café and headed back to the B&B to drop off their purchases. Tommy had just finished putting his stuff away when Adam dropped down onto the bed beside him. He quirked an eyebrow at Adam because Tommy could tell there was something on his mind and if he waited long enough, Adam would spill the beans.

He waited two minutes.

"Tommy?"

"Mmm?"

"Tell me about how, you know?  How you became a Panwerecat."

"Not much to tell.  I was born one.  My mom was a leopard, my dad was a tiger.  Both my grandparent's on my dad's side were tigers.  My grandma on my mom's side was a panther, but my grandpa was a leopard.  My sister is a tiger so they just assumed I would be too.  Thought it was passed down from the paternal side of the family.  Then when I hit puberty and shifted into a snow leopard my parents knew something was different because my mom wasn't a snow leopard.  They did some research back into our family tree and figured out that some aunt way back on my mom's side was a snow leopard.  Everyone seemed to relax after that.  They just figured I got some recessive gene and was just odd.  Until the next time I shifted and I shifted to a lion."

"Shit.  I'll bet that freaked everyone out."

Tommy laughed softly.  "Yeah, it kinda did.  My mom didn't know what to do and my dad just stood there staring at me in shock.  My sister was the first to react.  She talked to me and I shifted back to a tabby cat.  I went through three more shifts before finally settling back on my human form.  I was so wiped out my Dad had to carry me up to my bedroom."

He went quiet then, remembering that day.  "I heard them talking outside my bedroom door.  They'd never seen anything like what I'd done before.  My sister said she'd heard rumblings of things like that but they were just rumors, nothing concrete.  My mom was adamant about not telling anyone outside the family or outside the small circle of people they knew and trusted.  And that was the end of it.  From then on we rarely talked about it.  It never came up in everyday conversation and we only really talked about it behind closed doors and then only when I had shifted for some reason or another.  So I grew up knowing I was different but not really understanding why or what it meant."

Adam's scooted closer, wrapping an arm around Tommy's waist. Tommy felt him kiss the top of his head.  "I'm sorry."

Tommy shrugged.  "Don't be.  My parents loved me, I never had any doubt about that, they just didn't know what to do with me.  But I never felt like I was odd or unloved, they made sure of that.  They treated me like I was normal – I just – it's hard to explain.  I never wanted for anything and other than that one thing, I had a normal upbringing.  They never acted like it was weird that I could change into more than one cat, I mean, we kept our shifting to ourselves anyway so it wasn't a big deal to keep what I shifted to a secret as well.  So it was nothing my family did, I just knew, deep down in my bones you know?"

He moved so he could look up at Adam.  "I just knew somehow that my ability made me different than anyone else and that it would mean something some day."  He leaned up and kissed Adam on the chin.  "Now I know."

He settled back down onto Adam's chest, kissing his skin again.  "And I have you to thank for that."

Adam tightened the arm around Tommy's waist.  "What do you mean?"

Tommy shrugged again.  "I'm important to you in more ways than one, for more reasons than one and that's enough for me."

He felt Adam's arms squeeze him in an even tighter embrace and he let out an involuntary squeal from the pressure.  Adam chuckled and let go, kissing his temple.  "Oops, sorry kitty, didn't mean to make you hiss."

Tommy growled and nipped at Adam's chest.

"Don't start something you don't intend to finish," Adam warned.

Tommy soothed the spot with his tongue and then propped his chin up, looking at Adam playfully.  "Who said I wasn't planning on finishing?"

In one swift move, Adam flipped them so he was on top.  He ground his erection down against Tommy's making him whimper and thrust up against him.  "Fuck, Adam," he breathed out, his voice sounding needy and desperate.  "How do you do that?"

"Do what baby?" Adam whispered, toying with Tommy's earrings with his tongue.

Tommy shivered.  "Go from casual to searing hot in a split second?"

Adam cracked a smile.  "It's a gift baby, a gift."

He leaned down and pressed their lips together.  Tommy opened his mouth immediately, gripping Adam's arms tightly as their tongues moved together.  He arched his neck as Adam's fingers combed through his hair, gripping it, tilting his head back.  He bit his lip as Adam licked down his neck to his pulse.  "Yes," he hissed out.

Adam grinned against his skin, licking it, sucking it until it was flushed and sensitive.  Only then, when Tommy knew his blood was right there under the surface did he feel Adam's fangs extend and pierce his skin, sending shockwaves of pleasure pulsing through his body.  He shuddered with it, his cock aching with it, but Adam pulled back, licking the holes closed, kissing them softly. 

"Adam," he scolded, his fingers twisting in Adam's hair now, demanding.

Adam chuckled softly, licking at his collarbone, teasing him with just grazes of his fangs.  He moved down and tongued one of Tommy's nipples, licked it and sucked it until it was pink and hard and oversensitive.  He repeated the action to the other one until Tommy was writhing underneath him and incoherent sounds were spilling from his mouth. 

"Please Adam, please," he whimpered.

Adam flicked one of his nipples with a finger, his eyes darkening when Tommy jumped and moved into his touch.  Tommy moved restlessly underneath Adam, unable to stop his hips from thrusting up against his lover.  Adam slid down his body, his hands grabbing Tommy's hips, pressing him into the mattress, stilling his movements.  Tommy flung an arm over his face, eyes squeezed shut, and he mouthed at his arm, trying to stifle the wanton cries from tumbling out. 

Adam slid his thumb over Tommy's hip, just lightly caressing the scar there and Tommy stilled, frozen with want.  Adam licked his lips, wrapped his other hand around the base of Tommy's cock.  He stared at the head and then sucked it into his mouth, simultaneously pressing down on Tommy's scar with his thumb.  A scream ripped itself from Tommy's lips, his arms flung out to the sides fisting the sheets underneath him, and his eyes flew open, staring down at Adam broken and needy.

"Please," he whispered, his eye shimmering with desperation and fierceness.  "Stop fucking teasing me," he growled.

Adam sucked in a deep breath, the heat flaring between them, as he met Tommy's eyes.  Tommy stared into those ice blue eyes and saw so much love and desire that just the intensity of it almost sent him over the edge. But Adam held him back, he had no idea how, but he did.  And that's when he started to beg.

"Fuck, Adam, please I need to come, please."

The possessive look in Adam's eyes told Tommy all he needed to know.  He laid his head back down on the pillow just as Adam sucked the length of his cock into the wet heat of his mouth.  Tommy clung to the sheets, feeling the pleasure wash over him, feeling his orgasm start to curl through him.  He felt Adam's fangs graze the vein on the underside of his dick, his thumb continuing its relentless pressure on his scar and he knew he was seconds away. 

Adam swallowed around his cock and Tommy felt his fangs pierce his skin just as Adam dug his nail into his scar, slicing the skin open.  Tommy arched off the bed, crying out in pleasure as his orgasm slammed into him and he shot come down Adam's throat.  His vision grayed out as wave after wave of sensation flowed through his body.  Tommy felt like he was floating.  He was vaguely aware of Adam moving, straddling his hips.  He watched him through hooded eyes, swallowing hard as he watched Adam's hand circle his own cock and start to stroke it, his blood-covered thumb probing at his slit and his wrist flicking and turning on the upstroke.  Tommy bit his lip as Adam's strokes grew frantic and haphazard and he let out a gasp when Adam came and come splashed out onto his own dick, the warm liquid hitting his skin like a brand, marking him as Adam's. 

He closed his eyes but felt Adam mixing their come together on his stomach, his fingers tracing little circles through the sticky liquid.  The floating sensation came back when Adam started licking his belly, his thumb pressing on his scar again, making Tommy arch up into his touch.  Adam's fangs grazed his skin as he licked at the scratch over his scar, sealing it closed.  He opened his eyes, watching Adam through a sated haze as he licked his way back to Tommy's, cleaning up the evidence of their orgasms. 

Adam crawled up his body, licking along the way until their mouths met and his tongue pushed into Tommy's mouth.  Tommy moaned at the taste of the two them mingled together with just a hint of the coppery tang of his blood on top. They kissed until there was nothing left but the flavor of them and Tommy was breathless.  Adam pulled back and stroked some of Tommy's hair off his forehead.  "You back with me baby?"

Tommy smiled, a soft languid smile and curled into Adam's chest.  He placed his palm right over Adam's heart and stretched up and kissed him on the cheek.  Adam laughed softly, wrapped an arm around his back and pulled him in close.  They laid there in silence until the sun was showing brightly through the curtains and both of them could smell food coming from downstairs. 

A loud rumble came from Tommy's stomach and Adam chuckled. "Danielle's making her famous sweet and sour meatballs for happy hour. We should go down and have some. You'll love 'em."

He got out of bed and Tommy watched as he grabbed some stuff to head into the shower.  Adam's phone went off again and it was all Tommy could do not to answer. When Adam came back, he smiled at Tommy, but his smile faltered at the look on Tommy's face. "What?"

The vulnerable tone in Adam's voice made Tommy furious. Because Adam should never sound that vulnerable, that insecure. Except he and Adam both had been ignoring the elephant in the room for almost two days now.

"What's going to happen now that Danny's –"

"I don't know," Adam answered curtly. "We're on vacation. If they need us, someone will call."

"But you haven't been answering the phone."

"Because I didn't want to."

"Can you do that?" Tommy honestly didn't know.

"I can do whatever the hell I damn well please. And what I please right now is to stop talking about this and go get some damn meatballs!"

Holding his hands up in surrender, Tommy backed down. "Okay. You know we're eventually going to have to discuss it."

Adam moved forward, taking Tommy's hand in his, rubbing his thumb over the back of it.

Tommy waited, knowing Adam would finish what he had to say when he had the words to say it.

"I still can't believe I almost killed you," he whispered brokenly. "And now he's gone and I didn't even get to confront him, to get revenge…" his voice trailed off.

Tommy pushed Adam back until he was seated in a chair and then he crawled up into Adam's lap, straddling his waist.  He took Adam's face in his hands, forcing Adam's blue eyes to meet his own.  "I'm gonna say this again.  I will keep saying this until you believe it.  I Trust You.  With my life.  You think I don't know that at anytime in the woods you could have killed me?  I mean seriously.  I know it was all fun and games, but even as a lion I sensed you as another predator.  I trust you not to hurt me.  I trust you to take care of me and I trust you with my heart."

He took a deep breath. "This is life, it's not a movie, it's not some book that someone scripted, sometimes shit happens. The bad guys go free, the good guy doesn't get his day in court, what the fuck ever. He's dead. Good riddance. To be honest, she probably had just as much need for revenge as you, maybe more. Stop beating yourself up over what happened and the fact that someone else got to kill Danny. I hate seeing you upset like this and honestly, I'll do anything to never see that look on your face again."

"What look?"

Tommy swallowed hard, shutting his eyes against the memory.  "The look on your face when you started healing and you realized that you'd used my blood to heal yourself.  You were so worried, so broken, just crushed and all I could think was that I had done that to you.  Because I selfishly couldn't live without you."

Adam looked up at him and Tommy's breath caught in his throat at regret and awe he could see warring in his mate's eyes.  Adam's face softened though and he smiled.  He leaned up and kissed Tommy softly on the lips.  "I'm glad you were selfish, because I can't live without you either."

"Good, now let's go get some of those amazing meatballs I can smell. I'm starving!"

After a filling breakfast of scrambled egg, toast, fruit, and fresh juice, Adam and Tommy went out exploring again, hitting the things they'd missed the day before. Adam dragged them to the Underwater Fish Observatory and after a quick lunch, Adam spent the entire afternoon outpacing Tommy at the Wonder of Science at Twenty-Ninth Street. Danielle had included both things on the list because obviously she knew Adam was just a big kid at heart.

Once they exhausted themselves playing like kids, they got in the car and headed off to find dinner. They drove for a few minutes before Tommy shifted in his seat to turn and look at Adam. 

"What's on your mind Tommy Joe? I can smell the nervousness coming off you and stop chewing your nail."

Tommy glared at him, but put his hands in his lap. "So um, I uh, told you all about um, me becoming a Cat –"

"You want to know how I became a Vampire?"

Tommy was silent for a moment.  "Um, yeah, I kinda do." 

Adam's hands tightened on the wheel and he couldn't help the tension that built up in the air between them.

"Look if you don't –"

"I do.  I've actually been kind of waiting for you to ask me this.  But it's not something I can tell you while I'm driving.  Can you wait until we get to the restaurant?"

"Of course.  Sorry."

Adam brushed off his apology.  "Don't worry about it, no way you could know.  I want to tell you, have for a while.  I just – I can't while I'm driving.  Okay?"  He turned to look at Tommy and the stricken look on Tommy's face made Adam want to stop the car right then, but Tommy needed to eat so he kept going.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever you want."

Adam gave him a tentative smile and went back to concentrating on the road.  Out of his peripheral vision, he could see Tommy staring out into the darkness, absentmindedly chewing on his thumb. The wheels turning in his head were obvious but there was nothing Adam could do right now to fix it. He could get into people's heads, read their memories, even feel them sometimes, but he wouldn't do it without Tommy's permission. Then something clicked in his head. "I don't feel my memories when I talk about them, if that's what you're worried about."

When Tommy visibly relaxed, Adam loosened the grip he had on the steering wheel. "Don't worry, it's nothing bad, just emotional. For me."

Tommy nodded and they made the rest of the drive in silence.

This place was similar to Momma’s only it was run by a little old Oriental man.  His eyes lit up when he saw Adam and he pulled Adam down into a fierce hug.  He smiled at Tommy when Adam introduced them and pulled him into a hug as well, before leading them back to a table toward the back of the restaurant.  He gave both of them menus but promised to be right back with a special drink for Adam.

Tommy looked over the menu, eyes wide.  Adam laughed.  "What?" Tommy looked at him frowning.

"I can smell your hunger."

Tommy rolled his eyes.  He jerked his head towards Adam's menu.  "So is that like um, a special menu?"

"Yeah, Jai's son was made into a vamp about three years ago.  He started catering to vamps a few months later.  You should try the Beef Satay, and the Sesame Chicken, they're both really good."

Tommy nodded and went back to looking at his menu. 

By the time they were ready to order, Jai was back with drinks. A special one for Adam and a  large milk for Tommy. His eyes widened and Adam smirked. Tommy looked about ready to burst when Jai spoke. "Adam's always had a thing for cats even though he's allergic.  You must be the only exception."

Tommy blushed, said thank you and let Adam order for both of them.  Adam sat back in his seat when the owner left and Tommy looked at him expectantly.  Adam took a sip of his drink, actually several sips and then took a deep breath.  "How old do you think I am?"

Tommy shrugged and leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table.  "Twenty-eight?"

Adam smiled.  "Very good.  I was twenty-eight when I was first turned.  Now how old do you think I am really?"

Tommy sat back, his eyebrows knit together in thought.  Adam sat still while Tommy watched him, his eyes looking him over thoroughly.  "Well, judging by the way you feel, under my skin, in my head, I'd say you really can't be more than one hundred, maybe one hundred and fifty years old?"

Adam grinned at him, his eyes sparkling.  "Boy, you are good.  I'm one hundred and thirty two years old."

Tommy sat back for a moment. Adam watched as he tried to take all the information in and Tommy didn't say another word until after his appetizer had been delivered and he'd eaten one skewer of beef.  Adam was nervous, but he knew Tommy needed time to think, so he tried to wait patiently.

"So, it doesn't bother you?"

Adam frowned at him, not really sure what he meant. 

"Me, I mean.  I mean, I must seem like a baby to you."

Adam leaned forward and grabbed Tommy's hand, shaking his head emphatically.  "No.  NO.  Tommy, you're my claimed mate.  You're anything but a baby to me.  And frankly, with your shapeshifting ability, you're wise beyond your years. You've had to deal with so much more than the average twenty-eight year old human male, with shifter politics, vamp politics, hiding your true nature, it makes you seem older."

A familiar contemplative look appeared on Tommy's face again and he had to drink some of his milk before he could speak again. "H-" he coughed.  "How did it happen?"

Adam took another gulp of his drink, setting it down carefully and wiping his mouth with the napkin.  "Surprisingly, I was a performer then."

Tommy laughed.

"I had a benefactor, we called them patrons.  He was an older man, he'd taken a fancy to me one night and that was that.  He showered me with gifts, took me on trips, out to fancy restaurants, many places.  He never once let on that he was a Vampire.  Until one night, he came to one of my performances and came back to my dressing room and I could tell something was horribly wrong.  He was pale, much paler than he normally was.  He looked sick, like he was dying.  I went to him, and he pushed me away.  He said 'stay away boy, I can't, not now.'  But I wouldn't listen.  Because somewhere, somehow, I'd fallen in love with him, or at least what I thought was love.  I went to him, grabbed him up in my arms.  I led him over to the couch in my dressing room and sat down with him.  I begged him to tell me what was wrong, to tell me what had happened.  He looked at me then, really looked at me, and I saw his eyes, they were silver, tinged with red.  I was so shocked I pushed back from him but he held me fast.  I couldn't move."

Tommy swam before his eyes as Adam remembered, his mind going back as if it were yesterday.

_"Adam, I'm not what you think I am."_

_"Wh-what are you?" Adam asked shakily, fear coursing through him._

_Sir Frederick coughed, spitting up dark, almost completely black blood.  "Promise me you won't run.  I'm still the same Sir Frederick you love."_

_Adam nodded his head quickly, the vow slipping from his lips without thought.  "I promise."_

_"I'm a Vampire.  An Alpha Vampire, probably one of the oldest ones around.  I've been transferring my power to you bit by bit over time and now I need to give you the rest of it."_

_Adam instinctively pulled back; struggling in Frederick's arms a little bit only to find himself drawn closer._

_"Adam, I love you.  I think I loved you from the moment I first laid eyes on you.  I had such big plans for us.  I was going to tell you someday when I thought you were ready.  Then we would have all of eternity together.  But alas, a rogue Vampire hunter has taken that chance from us forever."_

_Tears spilled over Adam's cheeks, because despite the shock of Frederick's revelation, his sentiments were real as were Adam's except now they were never to be and that truth of that cut him deeply._

_"Sir," he began, but stopped when he saw the flash of hurt in Frederick's eyes.  He cupped Frederick's cheek in his hand, "Frederick, what do you mean?  What did this rogue Vampire hunter do?  Lead me to him and I will seek vengeance in your name."_

_Frederick gripped his arms tighter.  "No.  NO!  I forbid it.  The Council will take care of him, they are trained to handle men like him.  But you, you must take my place on the Council.  I've already made all the arrangements.  When we are finished here, you are to go find Sir Simon Cowell.  He is my oldest and dearest friend and he is expecting you."_

_Adam's head was swimming with the influx of information and he had no idea what to make of things like Council and replacing Sir Frederick.  His head lolled a bit when Frederick shook him but it made him focus._

_"Adam!  Adam, boy!  You have to listen to me.  We don't have much time.  I will soon die forever from my injuries.  We have to do this and we have to do this now."_

_Adam looked at him, tears streaking his face.  "Wh-what?  How do we do this?"_

_Frederick smiled at him gently, raising a hand up to stroke a finger down his cheek.  "I so wish we had more time, that I could do this properly, claim you as mine.  One day, I promise you, one day, you'll find someone to claim as your own.  When you do, promise me you'll do it the right way and that it will be forever.  Okay?  Promise me?"_

_Adam nodded, unable to speak past the lump in his throat._

_"Okay, okay.  Good.  You remember me saying just a little bit ago about me transferring my power to you bit by bit?"_

_Adam nodded again._

_"Every time we had sex, every time I spilled myself inside you, I gave you some of my power.  When the time was right, I was going to claim you and turn you in the same night, but now, we can't do that.  You're gonna have to drink my blood."_

_Adam blanched, felt the contents of his stomach lurch around uncomfortably.  "What?"_

_"You're going to have to drink my blood, in fact, you're going to have to drain me.  It's the only way to transfer the rest of my power to you."_

Tommy stared at Adam, silently handed him a napkin to wipe the tears that had started to spill over at the memory.  Adam wiped his face and still Tommy waited, as Adam tried to compose himself enough to continue. All these years and the loss of what he could have had with Frederick still go to him.

His eyes tracked the movement of Tommy's fork as he picked at his sesame chicken until Adam was in control enough to continue.

"So I did.  He used his fangs to cut a hole in his wrist.  He told me he loved me, put his wrist to my mouth and told me to drink until I felt his heart stop and I did."

"Oh Adam, I'm – I'm so sorry," Tommy whispered, reaching out to take Adam's hand.

Adam squeezed his hand.  "He died in my arms.  I couldn't even hold him.  As soon as the blood stopped coming, he turned to dust in my lap.  I don't even know how long I sat there but I finally got up and went to find Simon.  He gave me a place to stay and then taught me everything he knew about being a Vampire.  A month later I was introduced to the Council and even though I was young, they all recognized my power, or rather Frederick's power.  I was immediately placed in a position of power, the youngest Vamp ever but even the oldest among them couldn't deny that Frederick's power ran through my veins.  But it was more than that."

"You're a natural leader," Tommy said quietly.

Adam smiled softly.  "Yeah, I'm a natural leader.  Even back then, we switched, Frederick and I.  I didn't know until it was all over that the only reason he really wanted to top was to transfer his power. "

He went silent then and he could almost see Tommy's brain working, processing. He looked up and met Adam's eyes. "You must have a ton of questions."

Tommy nodded enthusiastically.  "So um, you um, he transferred his power –"

Adam chuckled quietly.  "Don't worry, it has to be a conscious thing on my part and no, I haven't been subtly transferring my power to you.  Besides, you’re a shifter, I'm not entirely sure how that would even work."

Tommy went quiet again, chewing his thumbnail and Adam saw his eyes go wide when the penny dropped.  "What about Neil?  Leila?"

Adam's eyes sparkled.  "I knew you were smart.  They are actually related to Sir Frederick.  You see, when I was turned one of the first things Simon did was take me to Frederick's family.  They knew about me of course, Frederick had told them he had a lover.  They also knew that he was a Vampire so as soon as Simon brought me over they knew what had happened.  They took me in as their own, because to them, I was their last connection to Frederick."

"Wait, I don't understand. There's pictures of you as a little boy with Neil.  You had red hair." Tommy protested, obviously unable to piece the puzzle together.  Then his eyes widened.  "The glamour.  You used the glamour for that.  But I thought you didn't like to use it," his eyes narrowed a bit, almost accusingly.

Adam laughed.  "Some of it's the glamour some of it isn't.  There is such a thing as photoshop.  Most of those pics were photoshopped by a very good friend of mine in the business.  The rest, well," he sighed.  "That's different.  That was to keep up familial appearances.  I've been doing that since Frederick turned me.  It's to protect my family and to keep myself from being discovered.  It's not to manipulate people into doing what I want based on how I look.  I guess I view using it in that situation differently."

"So, what, you just stay with the family and they grow old and die and new family members come and see you as the weird eccentric Uncle Adam that sometimes shops himself into pictures as a child?"

Adam threw his head back and let out a hearty laugh.  He laughed so hard, tears spilled over and ran down his cheeks.  He wiped his eyes with the napkin.  "I've never heard it put quite like that, but yeah, I guess you could say that.  They all know what I am, what I do.  When the children are finally told I sit down with them and go through the history, show them pictures of me through the years with their grandparents and their great- grandparents and so forth.  I've never had any one of them threaten to spill the secret.  They all seem to embrace it as some family heritage shit or something."

Tommy sat back in his seat and stared at Adam.  "So um, how many times have you gone to high school?"

Adam groaned.  "You really don't want to know.  And yes, it really does suck every time.  Although, this last time, was particularly rough."  He shrugged, "Nothing I couldn't handle obviously, but yeah, high school has never been particularly fun. And yes, I do actually have a collage of graduation caps just like in Twilight but no I don't sparkle." He flashed his fangs menacingly.

Tommy snorted, his lips curling up into a grin.  "I don't know, I just, fuck, man.  I just, why would you do that to yourself?  I mean, you're fucking hot.  Why –"

"I can't afford to stand out like that."

"But you're Adam Fucking Lambert, rockstar now."

"Yes, and I can age gracefully like the rockstar I am, grow old with my mate and die.  And possibly skip a generation or two before going back to my family.  They'll still know the story, but I can spare them the whole eccentric Uncle Adam ordeal for a while.  I try to do it as often as I can so I really am the old eccentric Uncle Adam. I try to make enough money every couple of generations so I can spare the family having to deal with me."

Tommy chewed on his thumbnail again, his brow furrowed.  "But why go to all that trouble?  Why not just," he shrugged, "I don't know, have a lair or a bat cave or something.  You have enough money right?"

Adam smiled.  "Tommy, you know me.  Do you really think I could go that long without human contact?  Without some form of attention? It's one of the reasons Frederick was drawn to me, same as I'm drawn to you.  I crave human contact, human touch, and yeah, the spotlight. But I also crave the comforts of a family.  Just like he did.  It's why they took me in all those years ago, it's why they keep taking me in.  They all recognize that need in me and so it goes."

When Tommy didn't respond, Adam reached across the table and took his hand in his.  "I know it's a lot to absorb, but you've met my family, can you honestly imagine them without me?  Can you imagine them turning me away?"

After barely a moment's thought, Tommy shook his head. "So, what someday when Neil has kids, he'll introduce you and when they get old enough the two of you will sit down and tell them what you are and explain that someday their kids might take you in and pretend they raised you?"

Adam nodded slowly.  "Except they'll always have known me, so by the time they find out, it will just be a cool secret to keep about Uncle Adam.  I mean Neil knew me his entire life before I moved in with them right before I started high school again."

Tommy ran a hand through his hair.  "Man, that's kind of fucked up, you know?"

Hurt flashed through Adam's eyes and regret and shame flared up in Tommy's eyes.  "Shit, Adam, that's not what I meant, fuck," he whispered, hanging his head. 

Adam squeezed his hand.  "Tommy?"

Tommy looked up, his eyes shiny with tears.  "I mean fucked up for you. To see so many people you love die of old age and shit and just to have to relive high school, I sure as fuck wouldn't do that.  How do you do that?"

Adam smiled.  "Because I get to be a part of all of their lives, even if it's for a short time and I get to love them and they love me back."

"And you thrive on that love," Tommy said softly.  "You need it just as much as you need the blood."

"And now you understand."

Tommy smiled at him.  "Now I understand.  But you've never had a mate before so what happens now?"

Adam shrugged.  "Don't know. We'll have to find out together. You game?" He tried to be flippant, tried not to acknowledge the hope rising up in his chest and he tried really hard not to imagine how crushing it would be if Tommy rejected him now.

Tommy was quiet for a moment and then he stood up and walked over to Adam and pushed in between him and the table, sitting on his lap.  He wrapped his arms around his neck, leaned forward and kissed him.  Adam's tongue slid into his mouth, not demanding just seeking and when he pulled back, Tommy pressed their foreheads together.  "I'm game."

Relief flooded through Adam and he smiled, his face lighting up with joy. "I'm glad."

They sat like that until long after their table had been cleared and the bill had been paid. 

"We should go."

Tommy nodded silently, got off Adam's lap, and followed him out to the car.  He fell asleep on the way back and didn't wake until Adam woke him when they got to Danielle's. 

"Come on baby, the bed's a lot better than the front seat of this car."

Adam could feel Tommy's exhaustion through their bond. He knew his history was a lot to take in and frankly he was just glad Tommy hadn't headed for the airport. Adam helped him up the stairs and he sat limp as a rag doll as Adam undressed him. He was asleep again before his head even hit the pillow. Adam just snorted and ruffled his hair before getting himself ready for bed. He fucked around on Twitter, finally answered a few texts from Michaela, Terrance and some others before shutting the lights off and turning to a sleeping Tommy.

"Thank you Tommy, for being you.  Good night," Adam kissed his forehead and let sleep pull him under as well.

 

When Tommy woke the next morning, Adam was already up and on the phone. Apparently, their little bubble of happiness was over. It saddened him. He and Adam had gotten to know each other even more, the level of intimacy between them had grown and he hated to see it end. But reality called, and soon they'd be heading back to deal with the fallout.

Adam had on his press smile when he got off the phone. Tommy could see the tightened lines around his mouth, his eyes.

"So, you gonna share?"

The mask dropped and Adam sat down heavily on the bed beside Tommy. "There's been a move among the council members to make me the head."

"What?"

Adam laughed, a bitter edge to it. "I know, right? Me? The head? Why not Simon or Michaela? But because I always had a problem with Danny and I was proven right, they've apparently found a shit ton of stuff at his house, the Council has had an unofficial vote."

"Unofficial?"

"Because I'm not there, they don't have the full council so it can't be official. But unofficially, they've decided that because all of them were blinded to Danny's misdeeds that they need fresh blood, so to speak, to head things up."

"And they want you."

"Yup. They want me."

"What about the members that were on Danny's side?"

"There were actually surprisingly few of them. They've all been sanctioned and put on probationary status. Meaning, they have to explain their motives behind any future votes to a senior member of the Council and they've been forbidden from turning anyone for a specified amount of time."

"Huh, I take it that's a pretty stiff sentence?"

"Oh yeah. Votes are private, theirs won't be for a very long time. And not only are the not allowed to turn anyone, they aren't allowed to obtain any new blood donors. They'll have to make do with who they have now or ask to borrow another Council member's donor. And both the donor and the Council member have the right to refuse."

"Wow. That’s both humiliating and harsh."

Adam shrugged. "Hey, you gotta hit 'em where it hurts. So. What do you think? Me? Head of the Council?"

A grin spread across Tommy's face. "I think you'll make a great one. You said you being a leader and being charismatic is what drew you to Frederick, he saw the potential in you even back then."

"What I didn't tell you was Frederick was Council Head back then. Looking back, I think now that he was grooming me to take over. That if he'd lived…" Adam's voice trailed off.

Tommy reached over and squeezed his leg. "Well, you're living up to his hopes and dreams now. It's never too late."

"I hope you're right," Adam said, dropping his hand to cover Tommy's.

"You know I am. You can do this." He leaned over and kissed Adam's cheek. "Now, show me one last day of fun in this town before we have to be back here to meet Danielle for dinner."

"So, did you get what you needed here?" Danielle asked between bites of pasta.

Adam eyes lit up.  "Yes.  We got exactly what we needed and even a few things we didn't know we needed.  So thank you as always, for helping me," he turned to Tommy and smiled, "Us, out."

Danielle beamed at him.  "You know you can always come here whenever you want."  She turned to Tommy, "that goes for you too.  My door is always open.  I'll make sure my number is programmed into your phone before you leave."

Tommy's cheeks pinked up but he smiled.   "Thanks Danielle."

They made small talk through the rest of dinner and after helping her clean up, they each kissed her on the cheek and hugged her, saying their thank yous and their goodbyes, as they most likely wouldn't see her in the morning.

Adam took Tommy's hand on their way back to their room, both of them quiet, lost in their thoughts.  Tommy headed into the bathroom, while Adam locked the door.  He walked over to the window and stood there, searching out the deer he knew lived in the woods.  He smiled when he heard Tommy come out of the bathroom.  He could almost see Tommy rolling his eyes.

"Don't worry, I'm not even thinking about it.  I'm just looking for them, that's all."

"Good."

Adam turned around and looked at Tommy.  In his head he could see him, a towel slung low around his waist, beads of water still clinging to his skin.  "Let's take a shower," he said roughly.

"You're just going to get us all dirty," Tommy protested weakly.

Adam took a step forward, a predatory gleam in his eye, the tension in the air suddenly thick and heavy with want and need.  "I don't care.  I wanna see you, on your knees, those pretty lips around my cock, water streaming down your face, my hand in your hair.  I wanna feel you pressed up against my skin, trapped between the heat of my body and the coldness of the marble.  I wanna taste you, the saltiness of your skin and the hot coppery flavor of your blood on my tongue."

He watched as a rosy hue spread rapidly up Tommy's neck to color his face and he closed his eyes and inhaled deeply, smelling the arousal that was suddenly permeating the air.  "Strip," he ordered softly, knowing that Tommy was obeying him without even opening his eyes to confirm it.

Adam could hear the whisper of Tommy's clothes as he took them off, slowly.  He inhaled again and smelling Tommy's desire, he opened his eyes.  He started at Tommy's bare feet, smiling at the black nail polish, slowly moving his eyes up Tommy's legs, to the large erection still trapped in a pair of tight blue briefs, to his chest, right down to his wrist – Adam's own teeth marks still pink and marking Tommy as his.  He raised his eyes to Tommy's face, not surprised to see the pink tinge to his cheeks, tongue darting out to lick his lips, and passion on blatant display in his eyes.

"Go turn the shower on," Adam ordered softly.

When Tommy turned to go, he slipped his briefs down, giving Adam a quick flash of his ass before disappearing into the bathroom.  Adam chuckled quietly and started stripping off his own clothes, leaving them in a trail on his way to the bathroom.  He walked in and shut the door, watching Tommy move behind the opaque glass doors.  He licked the tip of his fangs as they descended.  He opened the door and stepped into the shower behind Tommy.  Adam slid an arm around his waist pulling Tommy back against his chest, feeling his dick slide into the cleft of Tommy's ass. 

Tommy laid his head back on Adam's shoulder, turning it to the side, exposing his neck to Adam.  Adam felt his mouth water, already able to taste the sweetness of Tommy's blood on his tongue as he watched the pulsing artery in Tommy's neck speed up as his arousal grew.  He dropped his hand down, lightly stroking Tommy's cock, cupping his balls, and sliding a finger back, pressing gently over his hole. 

"Adam," Tommy whispered.

"Turn around, pretty."

Tommy turned in his arms, tilting his face up, pressing his lips to Adam's.  Adam swept his tongue into Tommy's mouth, pressed his hand against his back, holding him close.  He groaned as Tommy licked at his fangs, just barely grazing his tongue, but it was enough to give Adam a small taste of his blood. Adam broke the kiss and pulled back, sliding his hand up into Tommy's hair. Tommy smirked and sank to his knees. 

Adam flung an arm out to brace himself as Tommy opened his mouth and slipped his lips over the head of Adam's cock.  Adam gripped his hair tighter as Tommy's tongue probed the slit at the top, over and over. 

"Fuck," Adam moaned out.

Tommy smiled around his cock and slid his mouth down to the base, relaxing his throat and taking Adam all the way in.  Adam loosened his hold on Tommy's hair, giving Tommy freedom to suck how he wanted, for now.  He moved his head up and down over Adam's cock, licking it, sucking it, and even grazing it with his teeth, until Adam got desperate and tightened his grip. 

Adam leaned back against the wall as Tommy braced himself on Adam's thighs and let Adam fuck his mouth. Adam thrust into Tommy's mouth, loving the feel of the wet heat surrounding him.  He could feel his orgasm building at the base of his spine and knew he would have to stop soon, or he wouldn't be able to fuck Tommy. He gave a few more thrusts into Tommy's mouth before pulling him off by the hair. 

Tommy looked up at him and Adam felt his heart hitch in his chest.  Tommy's mouth was red and swollen, the water was streaming down his cheeks and his hair was wet and tangled around Adam's hand.  Gently, Adam dragged him up, crushed their mouths together and licked his own taste out of Tommy's mouth.

"Fuck, I love when you taste like me," he growled.

Tommy laughed.  "I always taste like you."

Adam licked at his neck.  "No, there are plenty of times you taste like you and I love that too."

They kissed languidly for a few minutes, the water raining softly down onto them.  Adam finally shifted them so that Tommy was caught between him and the wall.  Tommy jerked a bit when his ass touched the cold marble but Adam just pressed further into him. He licked his way down Tommy's neck, kissing a mark into the skin over his collarbone before bringing Tommy's wrist to his mouth. He licked at the new scar, suckled it, grazed his fangs over it, but never broke the skin, it had to heal on its own. 

Adam let go of Tommy's wrist and bent his head, sucking a nipple into his mouth. He tongued it, laving it until Tommy was writhing and Adam finally bit it gently with his teeth, just enough to bring the blood to the surface.  Tommy's hands buried themselves in his hair, holding him in place.  But Adam moved on, kissing his way down Tommy's belly, delving into his belly button until Tommy was squirming in his grasp and gasping for air.

"Ad-Adam, stop, please," he gasped out between giggles.

Adam licked it one last time and continued on, kissing and pulling up marks on both hip bones, carefully avoiding Tommy's cock.  "Turn around."

Tommy's hands dropped out of his hair and Adam looked up at Tommy who was blinking down at him in owlish surprise.  Adam tapped his thigh.  "Turn around."

Tommy's mouth turned down in a pout but he did what Adam said, hissing as his heated cock was now pressed up against the cool marble. Adam smoothed his hands over Tommy's ass, fingers digging into the muscles, massaging until he gently pulled them apart. Tommy's hands scrabbled for purchase on the marble and Adam could feel his skin heating up at Adam's scrutiny.  He leaned forward and darted his tongue out, just barely touching it to the circular muscle. He smiled when it twitched in response.  He did it again, only this time, he dragged the flat of his tongue right over it and it fluttered under his touch.

Tommy thrust back against him and Adam knew he wanted more, but he used his hands to hold Tommy against the wall as he drove his tongue into his lover, pushing past the muscle, feeling it clench around his tongue. 

"Fuck, Adam."

Adam smiled and continued to fuck Tommy with his tongue.  He rimmed him, licking in and out and around until the muscle was loose and Tommy's fingers were white from trying to dig into the smooth marble.  He licked his way up Tommy's spine, grabbing the waterproof lube he'd brought with them and lubing his cock up.  Adam positioned himself at Tommy's entrance and placing his hands on top of Tommy's, lacing their fingers together, he slowly pushed his way inside. 

Tommy laid his head back on Adam's shoulder and Adam kissed his temple as they both stood panting, too overwhelmed by sensation to say or do anything and then Adam started to move. He started out slow, pulling almost all the way out before pushing back inside. He did it again and again, setting an agonizingly slow pace. Tommy pleaded for him to go faster, tried to thrust back against him, twisting his wrists in Adam's grip in a weak attempt to release himself in order to grab Adam and make him go faster.  It was only when he went limp and pliant in Adam's arms, surrendering to Adam's control that Adam increased the pace and started to pound into him. 

He felt his orgasm building again, knew that Tommy's was too, if the sounds Tommy was making were any indication.  He moved his right hand, sliding it in between Tommy and the wall, wrapping it around his cock. He turned his face, licking his lips at the artery pulsing right beneath Tommy's skin.

"Do it," Tommy breathed out in a strangled gasp.

Adam kissed the skin over Tommy's pulse and closing his eyes, he squeezed Tommy's cock and sank his teeth right into Tommy's neck.  The sweet copper tang of Tommy's blood flooded his mouth and his thrusts became erratic. Tommy dropped his free hand to cradle Adam's head to his neck.  His fingers twisted in Adam's hair as Adam's hand stripped his cock, pumping it hard.  Adam pushed his thumb into the slit at the top and was rewarded by the pleasured yell that ripped from Tommy's throat.  He groaned against Tommy's neck as his ass clenched around Adam's cock, squeezing him and sending him spiraling over the edge as well. 

Slowly Adam pulled his fangs out, licking over Tommy's skin, watching as it healed.  Then he slumped over Tommy's shoulder, his chin resting easily.  Tommy turned and kissed the side of his face before leaning their heads together, his breath coming out in little pants.  Adam let Tommy's cock go and slid his hand up around his waist, holding Tommy to him.

"Mine," he whispered.

Tommy smiled, turning to kiss his cheek again.  "Yours."

He groaned and Adam felt his dick slide out of Tommy's body.  "Sorry baby, we should clean off and get to bed.  Got a big travel day ahead of us tomorrow."

Tommy never replied but he turned around and cuddled into Adam's body.  They took turns washing each other off and exchanging kisses. And when he shut the water off, Adam took his time drying Tommy, his fingers lingering over the various marks he'd left behind.  When he was finished, he hustled Tommy into the bed, shutting the light off, sliding under the covers and pulling Tommy up against his chest.  They fell asleep spooned against each other.

The next morning was a flurry of showers, packing, and driving off to the airport. It wasn't until they were seated next to each other on the plane that Adam felt like they had a chance to finally breathe.

Tommy clenched his hand tightly during takeoff and didn't relax until they were in the air and Adam's thumb was stroking over the scar on his wrist.

"This is going to change everything, you know," Adam mused. "Being Council Head. There'll be a shit ton more vamp politics you'll have to deal with," he turned to Tommy. "You sure you're up for that?"

"You know I suck at being diplomatic," Tommy groused.

Adam laughed. "Yes, nobody could ever mistake you for being diplomatic. But you know, maybe that's exactly what the council needs. People like you and me that aren't afraid to speak our minds and tell it like it is."

"Call them on their bullshit?"

"Yes," Adam let out a snort. "Call them on their bullshit." He squeezed Tommy's hand. "And you –" he kissed Tommy's knuckles "—are an expert at that."

"Fuck yeah, I am. And I'm not stopping for some hoity toity vamps that almost got us both killed."

"I'm counting on it," Adam said softly.

Tommy settled back into the seat and Adam felt his edges soften as Tommy focused on the music coming out of his headphones. Adam laid his own head back against the seat.

Things weren't going to be easy when they got back. He was immediately going to be swept away in Council meetings and whatnot and he knew Tommy would want to visit family and friends and see about any session work he could get.

With Danny gone and the threat hanging over their heads almost nonexistent now, Adam had hope for the future, for both of them. He shot a glance over at Tommy, no desire to stop the feeling of love that rushed over him. Once the dust settled and the final vote was in, he would take his rightful place as Council Head. A change was gonna come, no doubt about it. And with that final happy thought, Adam closed his eyes and slept the rest of the flight with a smile on his face.

 

**Two Months Later**

It had taken them a while to settle back into things in LA. The Council voted Adam in as Head, the members that had been overly supportive of Danny had been sanctioned just like Adam had said. Tommy was already getting used to his role as the mate of the Council Head, mostly it involved playing handsome arm candy to Adam and Tommy was just fine with that.

Every once in a while Adam would get that look in his eyes and Tommy knew he'd have to step in and 'do his thing' as Adam called it. Mostly the Council members were amused by Tommy's bluntness but after the first couple of times, even he could see the measured, thoughtful looks. And the first time the Council voted to follow one of Tommy's suggestions, he was so happy he almost crushed Adam with his enthusiasm when they finally got home.

It was after another successful vote that he and Adam went out with friends to celebrate. Adam was right, a change had come, Lissie had been cleared of killing Danny and the Council had voted to pay for any counseling or treatment she wanted. Not only that, but at Tommy's suggestion, they'd set up a fund for her schooling and made plans to discuss how they would prevent shifter enslavement and promote shifter cooperation in the future. Hence, the celebration.

Tommy took a sip of beer, while he stood watching Adam on the dance floor with Terrance and a few other friends.  He shifted a bit, resisting the urge to adjust the growing bulge in his jeans.  Seeing Adam dance was always a sexual experience. 

He stiffened as he felt someone press against his back.  The scent was all wrong, so he knew it wasn't Adam or anyone familiar.  Anger and disgust flooded through him at the mere idea of someone besides family touching him this intimately.

Without turning around, he spat out, "Dude, you ever hear of personal space?" 

"Rumor has it, you're a panwerecat.  That true?"

Before Tommy had time to answer, Adam was right there, flashing his fangs.

"He's mine.  Back off."

"Oh shit, sorry, Mr. Lambert, um, Sir, fuck, Highest Council –" the vamp stumbled over his words.

Adam held his hand up to stem the stuttering flow. "It's fine," he said flatly. "But don't let it happen again."

The vamp nodded his head vigorously, a grateful look on his face. "Thank you sir, your Head Councilness –"

"Go."

A smug grin on his face, Tommy watched the guy back away.  He leaned his forehead against Adam's chest and Adam's arms automatically went around him, rubbing his back soothingly.  Tommy could still smell the jealousy and need pouring off of Adam and he snorted in amusement.  "Do it. I know you want to."       

Adam's hands tightened around him.  Tommy's breath hitched when he felt Adam's lips on his skin.  He knew what was coming; it was only a matter of time.   

Adam licked and kissed his neck until Tommy's dick was hard and leaking in his jeans.  He moved restlessly in Adam's grasp, rutting lightly against Adam's thigh.  "Adam," he breathed out. "Never ever gonna get tired of that, your Head Councilness."

He felt Adam's lips curl into a smile against the sensitized skin of his neck.  Tommy's grip on Adam's neck went tight even as he laughed.  His nails shifted to claws, and he let them dig into Adam's skin.

Finally, Adam sucked his neck possessively, fangs grazing his skin.  "Mine, forever."

"Fuck yeah," Tommy murmured, combing his fingers through the hair at the nape of Adam's neck.  "Now, take me home and show me." 

"Gladly," Adam said, grabbing his hand and dragging him out of the club.

Later that night, Adam glanced over at Tommy.  His sleeping form sprawled half under the sheets and half on top.  He leaned over, sniffing at the base of Tommy's neck, darting his tongue out lightly to lick at the newest silvery scar.  Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath. Tommy's scent was intoxicating. Nothing smelled like a panwerecat.  Absolutely nothing. 

Fortunately, Tommy was his.  His to have, to take, to keep.  Adam didn't have to worry about resisting anything, not even temptation.

Sinking his teeth into the scar, Adam smiled. 

Temptation never tasted so sweet.

"Adam, what the fuck are you doing?"  Tommy mumbled, his face buried in a pillow.

Immediately, Adam stopped licking the back of Tommy's neck and rolled over, facing away from Tommy.  "It's not what you think?"

Tommy turned his head and raised an eyebrow.  "Really?  So it wasn't about you re-staking your claim and making sure everyone within smelling distance of me knows we're mated?"

Adam shrugged.  Tommy snorted.  Growling, Adam turned over, pinning Tommy underneath him.  He licked up the side of Tommy's neck, bit down.  Blood burst over his tongue.

"Actually, it's exactly like that."

Tommy just laughed into the pillow, reached an arm back and wrapped it around Adam's neck. "That's what I thought, fucker."

There was no mistaking the fondness in his tone and as Adam slid into the heat of Tommy's body, fangs in the back of his neck and thumb pressing into the scar on his wrist, he knew nothing would ever feel like this. Like his. Like mate. _Like mine._

 

 

**The End**

**Author's Note:**

> This is the final story in the Claimed Series. I'm not saying I'll never come back and write in it again, because even Sean Connery learned never say never :D However, this is a good stopping point and I hope you all agree.
> 
> Thank you to everyone that has read and commented on this series! I appreciate each and every single one <3333


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